Secrets and Lies
by desperatelyobvious
Summary: Just as Max begins to adjust to a normal life, she receives her expiration date. The flock was supposed to be there for her; they were supposed to help her through this. But why did Angel kick her off her pedestal instead and take on the role as leader? Post MAX.
1. Too Easy

**Hey everyone! This is my first story and hopefully, it doesn't suck too bad. :P It's kinda boring but crucial because all the details and stuff are here and in the next chapter. All the action starts in chapter 3 (or 4) so sorry. Enjoy!**

**UPDATE:****WOW. I had to like, edit the chapters because I realized I made them live in Connecticut (all the way up North to the right :D) and I made the time sort of early or mid-January. Here goes. ;)**

Max's POV

We were flying over Michigan. Me in the front, flanked by Fang and Iggy. If it amazes you that we're really _flying_, then get with the program, we're already passed book 5.

We were heading home or rather to our temporary house after checking out an Itex branch in Montana, west of where we live.

I sighed as I pushed some of my overgrown hair out of my face.

Just a little more and I'll _snap._ I just know it.

Ugh. I was dealing with so much right now.

Iggy just freakin' blew up that whole Itex branch! I mean, talk about inconspicuous! I bet the people in Mexico heard it!

Then there's Gazzy who's singing Peanut Butter Jelly Time non-stop at the same time Nudge's talking, who right now, is blabbing about acorns when a while ago she was debating with Angel about staples or glue. I managed to tune both of them out at the moment.

And lastly there's Angel. Nothing about her is bothering me right now or anything but lately she wouldn't lay off with the mind-reading and spilling _my_beans to the whole flock. Not to mention her stubbornness about breaking _my_ rules to the never ending rant about her being leader. That she could do a better job at being leader.

I know I shouldn't complain and I love everyone in the flock but everything was just easier when everyone_listened_ to me and actually _followed_ me.

Remember, this is a Maxocracy? What ever happened to _that?_

So all this has been going on and my rubber band of insanity stretches thinner and thinner…

'_How are you, Maximum?'_

Yes, it is actually possible to jump in the air when you're already _flying._

Gazzy looked over at me and I smiled back reassuringly.

Jeez I thought to myself. Here we go again.

'_Miserable. Now that you're here…'_

'_You should always be patient with the people who spite you the most.'_

'_Are you only saying that so I could be nice to you?'_

No answer. Like always, the voice disappears when it when it has nothing to say. What a lozer…

I rubbed at my temples and squeezed my eyes shut.

I didn't realize until now that I suddenly had a skull-splitting headache. Yes, when you're me you can realize you didn't have a headache all along what with all the problems and issues I deal with that it's wringing my brain to mush. More on the problems later.

I was so used to them that I didn't even know when they came and went.

'_Max, you're born to lead. And being leader comes with responsibilities and hardship. You have to learn to face all of it.'_

You see! Totally different topic! Try living with that for the rest of your life I swear you'll go crazy.

'_Shoo Voice. You've given me enough headaches to last a millennium…'_

'_You have to learn to lead and at the same time, listen to what others have to say. Being responsible for others isn't easy…'_

'_You think? I've been doing that for what, 5 years? Now go, Voice.'_

'_Make decisions wisely…'_

The voice said before disappearing. Or at least I think he disappeared because he wasn't lecturing me about why the sun sets in the west and all that stuff.

"Are you okay, Max?" Angel asked smiling.

"I'm fine…" I said absent-mindedly and swerved on a current.

The thing was we weren't saving the world 24/7 anymore. Starting about 8 and a half months ago we decided to stay in a safe house in Connecticut and lead 'normal' lives of going to school and stuff after hours and hours of decision making. And when I say decision making, I mean arguing with my mom and Jeb. Like always, I was out voted into staying in one place and going to school. (another example of the flock NOT listening to me) I've already gone to school about…_once_ in my life and I knew it well enough to know it sucked but, whatever. Time to time we'd take a little visit to the different branches of Itex and do a little damage cause hey, you can't save the world all in one sitting.

We landed on the front door of our gargantuan house (details later) and I brought out the copy of the house key my mom gave me to get inside. We entered, all of us slumping on the sofa as I shouted "Mom, we're home." Instead of my mom coming out from around the corner, Ella made her way to where we were. "Max, you're back! Mom had some emergency and went back to the clinic but there's still leftover dinner if you guys are still hungry… Total's already asleep." She added, noticing Angel looking around.

I smiled at her and said "Nah, but thanks, El."

I heard Gazzy yawn behind me and I turned around to look at my flock. "Okay guys, I'm turning in. Sleep early, we've got school tomorrow." I said and we all stacked our fists and tapped twice.

Flock habit, ever since we were in the E house.

I went up the stairs to my room, wondering why I was extra, extra tired now at days.

I know I had the habit of over working myself but I knew things were different.

We weren't on the run anymore. I don't over-work myself concerning studies. I get just enough rest and aside from flock problems, everything was good.

So why did I feel this way?

My room's walls are light blue and white. I really appreciate it that my mom went out of her way to find a house that can accommodate 6 avian hybrids and their magical talking dog.

(You don't have to read how Max's room looked like but I just had so much fun imagining how it would look I had to type it out.)

My room was BIG. As in big enough so that my wings could open fully and the tips never touched the walls. Big enough that I could walk around my room with my wings spread out behind me. It was probably 20 feet lengthwise and I really can't put a finger on its width because I don't think my estimation would do it justice.

My king-sized bed was positioned against the wall with a side table on 1 side and a mini fridge on the other. My room also had double doors that lead to a balcony facing the forest. I had a book shelf carved into the cement beside my bed, a couch and a couple of chairs and beanbags taking the space on front of my bed on a plush carpet, a huge TV stuck to the wall and an _actual_ desk with all my school books and homework half done. All my clothes (which weren't even a lot) were crammed into the 2 closets 90 degrees from my special wall, probably the only thing colorful in my blue, white and black themed room, filled with photographs, letters and tokens of memories pinned and taped to the wall that I did when we first got here.

If you were standing by the door, my bed was located on the north-western side of the room and to it's right was my – wait for it – grand piano. It was given to me when we first moved here and my mother wanted me to give it a try to take up piano. At first I was hesitant but I started to enjoy playing and loved listening to the music I was able to play that I continued to take it up and everyday of the summer before school started I learned from some piano teacher and taught myself through the internet. The power of YouTube.

My life's changed big time because last year I couldn't even buy a decent ponytail with the lack of money that I had to use rubber bands. I have no idea where my mom got the money for all _this_ and I don't know why she was spoiling me but I guess it was fair, seeing everyone's room's similar to mine.

After I took a shower, I jumped on my bed and opened my wings to let them dry. My eyelids were beginning to droop and I didn't care if my hair was wet, I turned on my side and dozed off, forgetting to go under the covers even on cold nights like these.

"Seriously Max, it's been 5 months already and I still can't get over the sight of you." Nudge said as I entered the kitchen for breakfast. I stuck my tongue out at her and self-consciously thumbed the hem of my blouse.

Yes, uniforms.

With preppy uptight schools come just as preppy disgusting uniforms.

I _don't_ exactly like being told what to do, but my mom told me it was _just_ a uniform and that the school rules of Greymoore High weren't so bad so I dealt with it.

The school uniform was a plain white blouse, a maroon necktie, a plaid maroon skirt that (sadly) stops until just before my knees, ankle socks and black chucks.

Well, _my_ school uniform consisted of ankle socks and black chucks 'cause you know, I would _never_ wear 3 inch heeled ankle boots to save my life.

I know, right? Total rebel. But you and I both know I would never.

They were death traps and Maximum Ride and high heeled anything don't go so well together.

My mom had to go through the trouble compromising with the principal to let me wear my chucks. The flock was laughing and tearing up at the whole scene.

In the end of course I got it my way.

Nudge, Ella and Gazzy attended _Jenier_ Middle School, and yes, it was French. They had uniforms too.

Angel, who was still currently in 2nd grade, attended Stryder-Hills Elementary School and her uniform was a red and black checkered dress with a cute little bow and plain black shoes.

As I put it before, she looked cute in anything.

"Make way for me and ma sweetheart!" Total said, entering the kitchen with Akila.

Total didn't call Akila his 'lady friend' anymore because they already got married.

I don't want to go into the details of the ceremony and me in a bride's maid dress and don't get me started on the reception! Point is, it was all so emotional and romantic Total ended up crying and Akila ended up licking his face. Very gross.

It's funny because Magnolia, Ella's pug, lives with us too because we couldn't leave her in Arizona and Total gets all protective and possessive about Akila even though Magnolia is a girl and so is Akila. Do the Math, Total. Akila ain't going anywhere.

Total jumps into Angel's arms and is immediately given his plate filled with pancakes and sausages while Akila and Magnolia wolf down their food on the floor.

After breakfast, mom drove us to school and even though Fang and I could drive perfectly well, my mom still wouldn't allow it.

We all rode this sort of Hi-Ace van with 4 rows with mom and Ella on the driver's and passenger's seat, Angel and I on the first row, Gazzy and Fang on the second row and Nudge and Iggy on the last row.

"Bye Max!" My mom said when we arrived at school as she kissed me on the cheek while I pulled the strap of my backpack up my shoulder.

"Bye mom, see you later."

My mom drove off and I walked with Iggy and Fang on the snowy path to the main building.

We've been going to school for 5 months now and thank the Lord everything's been going okay.

I parted ways with Ig and Fang 'cause they had to get things in their lockers and when I rounded the corner I ran into someone.

"Oh I'm sor –" I stopped mid-sentence when I saw who it was.

"Oh. You." I said with a straight face.

"Uh. Jerk…" Zach picked himself up off the floor and we both started chuckling in the next second.

Of course I had other friends.

There was Zach Anderson, the first person I made friends with here in school and he's turned out all right.

He's smart, sarcastic, funny and he taught me how to skateboard.

So now, the Maximum Ride can do a half-pipe.

He accompanied me to my locker to get my books and we both walked together to the classroom talking.

Once we reached the room, I collapsed on my chair.

I was exhausted from yesterday.

Exhausted enough that I didn't hear my name when the teacher was checking attendance.

"Cameron Ride. Cameron Ride? MISS CAMERON RIDE!"

"Hu-whut?" I said shaking my head.

Okay, rewind.

I did NOT choose the name Cameron for my fake name.

It was all Angel, Nudge and Ella.

But what was coming up wasn't their idea.

"Mister Nicholas Ride?"

"Here." Fang said.

Unbelievable, I know.

And very awkward.

Fang.

And I.

Siblings.

When we were going out together outside of school.

And I bet you know who's responsible for this: Jeb

He was the one who enrolled us here at Greymoore so he's responsible for all our papers.

He knew Fang and I were, you know, _together,_and yet he enrolled us here as _brother and sister._

I swear he's doing this to piss me off and we (me and Fang) would have beaten him to the core if my mom didn't tell us not to.

Scratch that, she didn't tell us not to, she begged us not to and I didn't understand why she was protecting him.

And the whole time Jeb was just standing behind my mom with smug look on his face while my mom and I screamed our lungs out at each other.

It was totally unfair.

I mean we looked nothing alike. I looked Hispanic while he looked, I dunno, Greek?

Siblings in the same level weren't allowed to be classmates for some reason but Ig, Fang and I were all in the same class because we were all enrolled late.

Our story was that Fang, who was "older" than me by a year, took prep when we were babies so we ended up in the same grade.

Things wouldn't have been so complicated and we wouldn't have even had to make an excuse story in the first place if it weren't for Jeb.

And you know what? The people in this school actually _believed_ we were siblings.

I kept telling my mom that no one would fall for such a crazy set up and guess what?

Everyone fell for it.

How stupid could these people get?

The first few subjects of the day past like any other school day, which was you know, boring and finally the bell rang for lunch.

I sat with other people at lunch, some of my other classmates I got close to.

Aside from Iggy and Zach, there was Lizette Green a.k.a. Izzy who was just about too preppy for my life without even trying.

Then there's also Margaret Raison but everyone calls her Mitzi, don't ask me why. She probably has THE brightest, most piercing blue eyes in our school and she's the epitome of California beach babe. But don't judge her just yet. She gets above average grades and isn't even on the cheer squad. She actually kinda reminds me of me because she so full of sarcasm she's usually nose to nose with Iggy and she acts like she doesn't give a care in the world about anything.

Lastly, there's Benjamin Kristoff (God, I just love saying his name) Benward but Mitzi nicknamed him Bris back when they were kids. He's even more annoying that Iggy and trust me, Iggy's annoyingness is mighty on its own and together they're pretty much unstoppable. Bris thinks I'm unusually manly for a girl, especially with my looks so he always jokes around that I'm 'one of the guys' and often calls me Ron instead of Cam.

So it was the 6 of us.

No Fang.

If we were to pretend to be siblings we had to act like siblings.

We did act like siblings in the past but things were different now.

So since we were siblings, siblings don't usually eat with each other at lunch. They had their own set of friends and they ignored each other in school to avoid embarrassment or something. Well that's what we see in the movies. So we had to act exactly like that and should even resent each other more because we were in the same batch, in the same class. Wouldn't you be annoyed if your brother or sister was your classmate?

"So Ron, James. Are you in?" Bris asked us.

"In what?" I asked. I really shouldn't get used to responding to Ron.

"We're planning on watching a movie this Friday after school. Wanna come?" Mitzi said, taking a bite out of her apple.

"Sure. What movie?" I asked.

"I wanna sit next to Mitzi and James! If I sat next to Ron, that would be a little to gay for me." Bris said, laughing at his own jokes. Sometimes they were just too much and they weren't even funny.

"Funny. Who said I wanted to sit beside you?" Mitzi said. Iggy snorted next to me.

"Haha! BURN." Izzy said. Everyone else continued talking among each other as I felt another headache creeping into my head towards the end of lunch and I tried not to think about it.

**I know. Not the best ending ever. But it's still, as I said, the boring stuff.**

**I'd like to hear about what you think! :D I can take constructive criticism but don't hate the story. REVIEW!**

**Peace.**

.: Tiffany :.


	2. Extreme Handball

**Hal-oh! This chapter's focuses on their game in PE which is: handball. If you don't know what it is, JFGI. It's really awesome. ;) And it also has a little Fax I guess. And BTW, thank you BlackAthena for being the first (and only) reviewer. **** I'm kinda sad but also happy that some people did that whole story alert thing when there's barely anything yet. :P So…enjoy!**

**OH! And I don't really think it's all that necessary since we're all aspiring authors and even if we were real authors, why would we be writing fanfics but for the sake of it –**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride. Period.**

**UPDATE: I also edited a few stuff here about the weather. Haha!**

* * *

After Finite Math class we all sauntered towards the locker rooms for PE.

Whoever designed our uniforms must've been real sexist because even our PE uniform wasn't very conservative.

We had to wear these white t-shirts with the school's coat of arms to the right, running shoes and black mid-thigh shorts. For the guys, they had to wear black basketball shorts. Lucky.

As of now, we were learning team handball which was a pretty cool game. It was like soccer and basketball combined.

I was placed in red team, along with Iggy (he was almost always with me in everything) and we both put on our red basketball jerseys over our PE shirts before stretching.

As I was holding my leg back to avoid pulling my muscle I saw from afar some of my girl classmates extending their legs out in the open as different forms of 'stretching'. Yeah right. I could see some guys ogling at them and I was embarrassed for my gender. I mean, where was their sense of dignity?

I rolled my eyes and started running laps with my friends.

After the class did their stretching and a couple of exercises we started our game and got into positions. Handball was usually played out on the field but we were playing indoors in the gym today because of the weather.

Our team had 4 runners and 2 on defense while other team had 5 runners and 1 on defense. I positioned myself behind Evan Wright, my teammate who I was usually assigned to back up. Iggy ran off to the goal.

This was only our second meeting since we learned handball and yesterday, the other half of the class got to play so today, red team and yellow team were playing.

"Move aside James, you might just get hurt." David White, one of my teammates said to Iggy. Iggy was about to retort when I ran over to them and put a hand on David's shoulder.

"What's going on? Just let James be goalie." I said to him.

"He's blind! I'm am NOT going to be responsible for him if he gets hurt." He said defiantly and glanced at my hand on his shoulder.

"I may be blind, but I'm not deaf! I'm still here and if—"

"David, he can handle it. Trust me." I said, trying to make my voice kind even though I wanted to drop kick him into next week. Who did this guy think he is anyway? Ugh. I just had to be teamed up with another one of those cocky jerks.

He sighed but still looked wary. "Fine, I'll be offense." He said and ran to stand close to Evan.

I was about to run back when Iggy said "Flirtation at it's worst. I can't believe he fell for it."

"What are you talking about?" I asked with a what-the-hell tone. But Iggy just laughed and shook his head.

Everyone knew he was blind and I could tell people thought he was useless but they didn't know about his enhanced senses.

So with his height of 6'3 ½ and his awesome hearing, he would be unstoppable.

Since we were supposed to act normal, we couldn't use our 'special abilities' that would seem too unnatural like say, super speed.

Iggy's case was okay because "they say" when you're blind all your other senses get stronger but it's weird for a supposedly average 15 year-old girl to be able to run 100 kilometers or more without getting exhausted.

So I had to slow down every PE class, which was a pain, but I couldn't do anything about it.

As I was walking back, I chuckled to myself when I saw Fang getting into position like me.

Seeing him in a yellow basketball jersey and basketball shorts were so un-Fang like of him. Iggy and I always tease him after school that he looked like such a ray of sunshine!

People love watching sibling rivalry in action so I could faintly hear people choosing sides between me and Fang of who would win.

To me, they were more entertaining than we are.

When coach blew his whistle and threw the ball, Evan from our team immediately caught it and passed it to me. I ran while dribbling towards the opponent's goal but when I was at the middle of the court I got blocked by Michael and Mason from Fang's team. I tried to sidestep them but they covered me completely and before any of them got to steal the ball I passed it to Sophia, our 4th runner. She runs pretty fast and reached the opponent's goal in no time. I ran alongside Evan towards where Sophia was but Fang and Michael blocked her and in the next second, Fang got to steal the ball. He ran back towards our goal fast and before he made it to Mia, one of our defenses, Evan tackled him to the ground and they both fought on the gym floor for the ball. Michael joined it and got a hold of the ball but when he started to dribble it and tried to shoot, our 2nd defense Kevin, caught it and threw it towards me. I smiled and began dribbling the ball towards Fang's goal. David backed me up as Michael and Fang tried to get the ball from me and out of nowhere, Will Clark, a runner from Fang's team pops out and steals the ball from me. Dammit! Fang and Michael backed him up, flanking him on both sides as they ran towards our goal. Sophia caught up with Fang and tried to tackle him but just practically bounced off him when she jumped. Whoa. I took it as an opportunity to jump in and tackled Fang to the ground with so much force I felt all my bones shake. With the new opening, I shouted for Evan to steal the ball and right on cue, Evan slapped the ball from Will's hands and started dribbling off in the other direction.

Everyone was screaming. People from the audience, our coach, some of our teammates but everything were so fast-paced all the noise seemed to be drowned out.

I got off Fang and smirked at him. He got up without stumbling because that's just how he does and we both started running off to help our teammates.

Evan had the ball now and when I got close to him, he passed me the ball. I sidestepped their 4th runner, Makayla Brayshaw, and with the help of Evan, who blocked their defense guy, I shot the ball left with so much force their goalie, Justin, was lucky he dove right because that would have really, _really_ hurt if he got hit in the face or something. Some of the people in the audience whooped and Sophia and Evan gave me high-fives. As I passed Fang I whispered so low that only he could hear.

"And that's how you play handball."

"Lucky shot."

"You just keep telling yourself that."

Coach passed the ball to me and I started dribbling towards Fang's goal again when Fang himself came up on front of me and started trying to steal the ball. The rest our classmates started cheering.

"GO NICK! STEAL THE BALL!"

"RUN CAM, RUN! SHOVE HIM AND RUN!"

It was hilarious. While I was momentarily listening to the crowd, Fang slapped the ball on his palm and got to steal it away from me. That bastard!

I ran after him and tackled him to the ground too late as he passed the ball to Michael. As Fang and I stood up, I glared at him and a tiny smile played on his lips. Some people went "Ooooooh!" while others went "Ohhhhhh!" They wouldn't have the courage to ooh and ohh if my glare was directed towards them.

Michael and Mason were passing the ball back and forth between each other to stall the whole time we were down and when we finally stood up, Michael handed the ball to Fang and Fang tried to shoot a few meters away from our goal.

Iggy was often very hard to get past but Fang always changed his strategy. He did a backhand throw with one hand and it whizzed past Iggy's head at the last minute. Iggy looked momentarily confused and coach blew his whistle. Some girls from the bleachers cheered.

"And that's how you play handball." He whispered back to me.

I punched him on the shoulder and he took a step back. Which translates to, if I punched an ordinary human as hard as I did Fang, they would have fallen and gotten bruised.

As I was walking back David said to me "And you let James be goalie?! I told you I should've—"

"Oh shut up." I told him coldly because I really wasn't in the mood to hear him rant.

He paused mid-sentence and ran back to his post without another word.

Coach passed the ball to Fang and he started running towards our goal. Evan and Sophia tried to steal the ball from him and he passed it to Will. Will jumped to catch it but I blocked him, jumped too and pushed him for the ball and began dribbling it to Fang's goal. Fang suddenly came out of nowhere and blocked me so I had no choice but to pass it to David. David ran, backed up by Evan, and with no one trying to steal the ball, David tried shooting the ball. One of Fang's defenses, Jessica, jumped and blocked it with her hand. Damn.

Michael grabbed the ball and ran opposite of his goal. He dribbled quickly and surprisingly, he didn't pass the ball to Fang when he got close to him. I ran alongside Fang, matching his pace and guarding him just incase. Ahead of us, we saw Michael trying to score but when he jumped to throw, Sophia grabbed the ball in the air and ran the opposite direction. Go Sophia! Fang then sprinted off to her and I followed right at his heels. Fang got to steal the ball from Sophia with no difficulty and when I tried grabbing the ball and my hands wrapped around it, we both fell close to my goal.

Most people laugh when our classmates wrestle for the ball because they looked funny but no one was laughing now. Maybe it's because we looked so brutal.

Anyway, Fang was holding the ball tightly, not even hugging it like most people do, and I clawed him for it. David tried to steal the ball from him but he ended up getting elbowed in the face and he backed away holding his nose, cursing.

"Let…go…of…the…damn…BALL!" I screamed.

Then Fang punched me in the gut, probably by accident, and it was all downhill from there.

I elbowed him back and twisted his arm to let go of the ball and he shoved me in the chin when I got a hold of it.

Oh no he di-n't.

I kneed him on the chest hard and shoved him to the ground for good measure as I ran for their goal.

I dodged Makayla's tackle but the ball flew from my hands when Michael hit me and the ball rolled out of the court. Oh jeez.

Our coach whistled.

I could feel bruises forming on my body but I didn't let it stop me and I positioned myself behind Evan for the serve.

I was standing right on front of Fang now and we were both glaring at each other.

I know. We get so competitive. But so what?

I timed the serve and made sure I had the last word.

"It's on, _Nick_."

"Hasn't it always been on, _Cam_?"

"Not even close."

"Is that so?"

"Hell yeah." I said and jumped to grab the ball. I saw Fang advancing in my peripheral view and I extended my arm out to just push him but I ended up shoving him so hard with the palm of my hand that he flew a couple of feet back and I was scared I might've broken one of his ribs.

No time to think about that now, I ran for Fang's goal past him and dodged Michael's tackle.

Mason ran past me and hit me that I turned around and he got a hold of the ball.

I ran along side him, trying to grab the ball but he tried shoot and it flew towards our goal fast.

I ended up smirking when I saw Iggy catch it at the last minute with one hand and throw it back to me without missing a beat. I looked over at David and saw him staring with his mouth open.

I caught the ball and ran back. I side-stepped Makayla and almost ran into Michael.

"Oh no, you're not."

"Oh yes, I am." I said while dribbling and he was almost impossible to get past because he was so good but I did the first thing that came to my head because I had no other choice.

I threw the ball up high, pushed Makayla away and – get this – pulled down Michael's shorts.

It was the best way to slow him down and my plan was even more effective when he slammed into Will.

All of my classmates were laughing and even coach was suppressing back chuckles as I jumped over Will crouching on the ground and made a run for it.

When I was almost there, Fang stepped in front of me a few feet away. I dribbled the ball in front of him and thought quickly of ways to get past him.

Almost everyone was quiet, watching the battle of brother and sister and the silence made it hard for me to think.

"Just like old times." Fang said and I remembered all those times when we were little and we'd wrestle in the E house for the shallowest reasons.

"No." I said.

He raised an eyebrow at me and I answered his silent question.

"I used to _let_ you win back then. Not this time." I said defiantly and when I made my move, Fang lunged at me to try and tackle me but I knew he was gonna do that and I ran and slid on my knees, true rock star-style right under Fang until I was close enough to his goal to shoot. I aimed low and the ball shot between Justin's shins hard.

Coach whistled twice. The game was over.

"OH YEAH!" Evan shouted and ran towards me, wrapping his arms around my thighs and spinning me around. He was extremely strong for a normal 15-year old. I high-fived Sophia because she was just awesome and I bumped fists with Iggy.

"I bet David couldn't have blocked a ball like that." I told him and he half-smiled.

"David ain't got nothin' on me." He said and we both laughed.

Suddenly, Evan ran up to me.

"Dude, you alright?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" I said, raising my eyebrow. He shook his head.

"Come on, I'll take you to the nurse's office." He said.

Wait. Why?

"Ohmigod! Cam, that was awesome! But are you okay?" Izzy said when she came to stand beside me.

The question was is everyone else okay?  
When I looked over at Evan, I saw that his shirt had some blood smears on the lower part of his shirt and I stared. But he didn't look like he was in pain.

"Max, it's 'cause your shin's bleeding." Iggy stage-whispered to me and laughed and when I looked down, sure enough my shin had this deep scrap with blood smudged around it and skin hanging off. I probably got it when I did my awesome-rock-star-slide thing. Oh poo. The wound looked painful but I didn't seem to feel pain. Maybe I was still in shock.

"Oh. That. No worries." I said and wiped the blood off with the back of my hand. Some of my classmates winced and hissed and I wiped the blood on my hand on my shorts.

"Ms. Ride, I think you should go to the nurse's office." Our coach said, looking kind of grossed out.

"I'm fine, really." I said but in the end they made me anyway. Jeez. Humans are so frail.

That afternoon when we got home, my mom ambushed me with wonderful, great-filled news! Note to sarcasm.

"Max, you don't have to do it if you don't want to…" my mom added as an after thought.

She supported me with the whole saving the world mission but she was still my mom and an average parent would surely worry for their kids if they had to face certain danger for most of their lives.

"No, it's okay. I want to go." I said, massaging my temples.

"Are you sure? You've been going on missions for quite some time…"

"Mom, I was on the run my whole life. Well considering now and the couple of months we stayed in Anne's but you get the point. I'm fine with it, really." I said with a smile but inside, I was so sick and really tired of going on missions.

Right before dinner, Fang and I lounged in the living room just watching TV.

Fang put his feet up on the coffee table and my head was on his lap as we continued flipping channels for something good.

While channel surfing, Angel and Ella came in and took a seat on the other couch.

"You guys look exhausted." Ella said.

"Ya think?"

"What'd you guys do? Wrestle sharks or something?"

I was about to answer her when Iggy entered the room and sat on the La-Z-Boy.

"Worst. They played handball." He said with a straight face and we all laughed.

"You're so competitive." Fang said with a teasing voice, stroking my hair.

"Haven't I always been?"

"Yeah, but you've never been so forgiving. What happened?" Iggy interrupted.

"What do you mean?"

"They were practically killing each other on the field in PE! Very romantic, Fang. I gotta hand it to you. A girl loves it when their man's trying to sucker punch them. It just proves how much he loves you." Iggy said.

"Psh! And you know that because…?" Ella asked.

"Maybe 'cause he _is_ one. What'd your boyfriend do to you Iggy? Sock you in the face that's why you ended up looking like _that_?" I said and everyone laughed.

"Ha-ha. Very funny."

"I know right? I think I should be a comedian." I winked and when I looked up, I saw Fang smiling down at me.

* * *

**Eh.**

**I'm sorry it was crappy. :| Next one will be better! Promise.**

**R&R please! :D**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	3. The Pen Mark

**READ: Heya! Um. If you've already read the first 2 chapters I'm just telling you now that I changes some stuff in it but only about the weather because I don't live in Connecticut or anything but I know stuff about the place and I know that it stops snowing there like Feb or March so I got the time wrong. I just edited the weather so you don't have to read it again and I'm gonna following the same weather for the rest of the story. So yeah.**

**READ IF YOU WANT TO: Also, thanks to mythicalcreatures428 and Iced-Tea-XD for reviews! **

**And to BlueStripedPolo's answers: sorry 'bout the details. I'll lessen up on that. :P And yeah, I thought about that too because she looves her mom to death and stuff but as mentioned, a lot of things haven't really been going her way and her mom was defending Jeb so she was really pissed. They were prolly like raising their voices at each other or something.**

**Oh, and on the second chapter, I meant for Iggy to call her Max since she was the only one who could hear him. Like, when other people can't hear the flock they tend to use their real names. They (will) sometimes even slip while they're with their friends and stuff. As for the sibling thing, I dunno. Some schools like mine have these sort of policies but I guess it's different for you. And yeah! I'd want my sibling in my class too! Haha! **

**READ: Anyway, back to the story :D I bet you saw this coming. I hope this was much better. ;) Enjoy!**

* * *

"RUN!" I screamed, pushing all the younger kids up the stairwell to run ahead as the alarms sounded off.

Damn. This wasn't the building.

We went on another mission again this afternoon, looking for Itex Florida, which so happened to be Itex's main office. We were going to do a little damage today but just our luck, we ended up in the _wrong building_. This wasn't Itex Florida.

I mean, why couldn't each Itex building just have a huge sign saying 'ITEX BUILDING, DESTROY HERE.' Sign so we could get it over with?

Crap, no windows! Just never-ending stairs! Where to escape, where to escape…

Oh for Christ's sakes, I'd crash right through the wall if I could!

"We're almost to the roof! 12 more flights!" Fang shouted from above.

I rounded a corner, faintly hearing security gaining on us when I heard Nudge stumble and yelp from behind me.

I turned around and saw Nudge tugging her sweater where it caught on the stair railing. She just had to wear a sweater to be _so_ fashionable at a time like this!

"Nudge, hurry up!" I shouted. I could hear the foot steps coming closer.

"Max, help!" She cried and with no other choice, I went back one flight to help her. I examined the tangle quickly, the yarn caught on some nail or bolt, and brought out my pocket knife from my ankle.

I was about to hack her sweater off when Nudge shouted "NO! This sweater's from Marc Jacob's new line!"

"Who the fudge cares, Nudge!" I shouted and I would have patted myself on the back for rhyming so spontaneously if I weren't so tense about getting out.

I cut the dark blue sweater with one swipe and we ran for our lives. Literally.

"Fly! Straight up!" I said, because Nudge was running too slow in front of me and I could hear them coming.

I grabbed Nudge's waist and _threw_ her upwards through the middle of the spiral staircase as I continued running. When I looked back, they were so close already. How did they run so fast?

I paused for a while and stared like some idiot as they got closer and in the next second, I suddenly had an adrenaline rush through my body.

I wanted to put as much space between me and the police to keep them away. They couldn't see me. We've already had too many experiences with that and we were known publicly as the good people. What would they think if our pictures were splashed all over the news as robbers or something?

I needed them to slow down or stop or something. They couldn't catch us.

I ran harder, pumping my feet one on front of the other and when I looked back I grunted to make my feet go faster.

But then the unexpected happened.

As I was running, the police or whoever was chasing us suddenly fell backwards and tumbled down the stairs when I yelled.

Like some force _pushed_ them.

I almost laughed (it looked _really_ funny from up here) but continued to run.

I really wanted to get away and I was sorry I didn't care if they were safe or not as I burst through the roof doors and joined the rest of my flock in the sky.

The cold air slapped my cheeks and my whole body but the flock and I were used to it. It kind of shocked us, cold air and tiny bits of snow here in Florida but you know, it's global warming fault. Another reminder of my mission to save the world.

"That was close." Angel said when I reached them.

"Totally." Nudge said breathless.

"We could always try looking for Itex again tomorrow." Iggy suggested.

"No. We should take a break. Try again next week." I said panting. Everyone looked at me for a while but eventually nodded.

That was close.

I hated risking everyone's lives when we went on these missions and I know the flock's used to all this but I can't kept but worry for them. Besides, they have more important things to worry about.

I was also kind of wondering what just happened. Did one of the security people just trip or something? 'Cause that looked insane.

Or maybe I was just insane.

I shook my head and flew faster to catch up to the flock who were already a couple of feet away.

The next day at school was just your average school day. Homework, lectures, notes and chit chat. The day was very drag-ey and I wanted it to be over already.

But things started to turn around in History class.

I was dozing in and out of our discussion about World War II. I could even hear Iggy and Izzy whispering around me about something not World War-ish that I didn't care about when in the next second I bolted upright on my chair, clutching my head and closing my eyes shut as an enormous headache the size of the universe swept through me and practically knocked me off my feet. And I was sitting!

It was strange. Like nothing could describe how painful it was. It was a million times more painful than my brain attacks in the past year and I felt as though my brain was being shredded on a cheese grater and pureed in a blender at the same time. It was just too much and deep down inside my throbbing, splitting head I knew I wasn't doing the pain justice.

It all happened in the middle of flippin' class and I didn't want to disrupt or cause a scene so I just sat there clutching my skull and biting my lip so hard to keep from screaming and crying that the skin broke and I felt blood flow into my mouth.

How long I suffered? I don't know. The pain ebbed away slowly and when I stopped clenching my teeth and holding my breath, I finally noticed a few hands shaking me and whispering my name. How long has this been going on?

I slowly raised me head to look up, surprised that I could actually move, to see Iggy and Izzy looking at me with concern. Well Iggy was looking in my direction with concern but you get the point. Zach was on the other side of me rubbing my back and standing just behind Iggy were Bris and Mitzi also looking concerned.

"Jeez. I don't even know what the hell was happening to you." Mitzi said, rolling her eyes and putting her palm to her chest.

"Are you okay?" Izzy asked, her big grey eyes right up on front of me.

"I'm fine. Just a headache…" A really hugeass headache.

"Nick, she's fine. You can go now." Iggy said to someone behind us and when I looked back I saw Fang was standing there, his eyes trained on me that gave away nothing.

But Iggy and I both know he saw what happened and he was worried about me.

I just faintly smiled back at him and he left without another word.

"Come on, let's go to lunch. Get your mind off things." Zach said beside me on the other side and I got up and followed all of them out of the classroom.

In my peripheral view, I saw Mr. Green, our History teacher eyeing me warily.

When we exited the classroom, Iggy slowed down to make himself right beside me as we walked.

"You okay?" He whispered so lightly I barely heard it. I just nodded.

Whenever I got headaches, something dramatic is going to happen. It'll sweep the city.

'What the hell was that for?'I thought to myself.

'_It's just begun, Maximum. You have to prepare yourself.'_

'_Okay, that was random.' _I thought back calmly and defiantly but I was thoroughly surprised that the Voice decided to pop up right then.

'_You will also need to find answers. Go –'_

'_Lady, dude or whatever the heck you are, I've been looking for answers for ages. Don't tell me what I already know! And Oh My! I'm so scared of the pain that will haunt me I'm quaking in my checkered chucks! I've faced pain and hurt countless times and I've been at Death's door in the past so don't tell me about the pain. My life's the definition of pain.'_

'_Find the answers. Go to measures you never thought you'd reach for. It will surprise you.'_

'_Well my life's full of surprises and I always end up where I never intend to go anyway. No shocker there so your lecture was rather pointless. Talk to you some other time, Voice.'_

And the voice didn't reply.

Later that day after I changed out of my PE uniform and packed my stuff, I walked to the gates with Izzy. Students usually waited for their rides home in the area surrounding the school's gates where there were benches and small fields of grass where people sat on and talked with their friends while waiting but nowadays people crowded under the roof of the gate's building because of the snow. Other students were brave enough to have snowball fights in this weather and some students actually didn't mind the cold. Like me. We walked towards the wooden picnic tables, stepping over the usually-soft-but-now-frozen grass and after polishing off the snow, plopping on the bench. We talked while I was waiting for mom, who usually took 5-15 minutes to get here.

While Izzy huddled herself on the bench, her arms wrapped around her knees, fully clothed in leg warmers and a thick sweater, I was sprawled right beside her, my elbows resting on the table behind us and my legs out in front of me, crossed in the ankles, wearing nothing but my uniform.

"Ugh! It's s-soo co-old!" Izzy said, rubbing her red nose beside me. Then she looked over to me and rolled her eyes. "God Cam, what is wrong with you?! It's twenty-four degrees and practically naked in your uniform!"

I just laughed and licked my dry lips.

Izzy left about 3 minutes after and I was left to wait for mom alone. Iggy was submitting a late paper back at the faculty and Fang was with his friends in the shades, a couple yards from where we were so I leaned back on the table's edge and started to space out and think about random things.

"Yo, Cam. Earth to Cam, you there?" A voice spoke and when my eyes focused on the face on front of me, I realized it was Zach and he was waving a hand in front of my face.

I laughed a little and smacked his hand away.

"Don't strain you brain too much, Cam. I could see you were deep in thought. What were you thinking 'bout?" He asked, curious.

'Nothing really."

"You know, they say if you space out you lose brain cells." He said, nodding.

"Really? Then you got nothing to lose, Space Cadet." I said, smirking.

He started laughing and I smiled. That was one of the few things I liked about Zach: he was so easy to talk to.

I enjoyed Zach's company and we didn't have to talk at all. We just sat together in silence on the bench. _Why was taking Iggy so long?_

I whipped my head towards the gate to check if he's come out yet but there was no sign of him.

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled and in my peripheral view, I saw an arm stretch towards me and felt the tip of soft cold fingers brush the back of my neck.

I jerked away from Zach and stared at him incredulously, my eyebrow raised. What the _hell_ was he just doing…?

"No Cam, som--" He said, reaching towards my back again. I smacked his hand away hard.

"What," I said coldly, "are you _doing?_" Oh God, please don't let him start flirting with me like the rest of the duds in this school.

"Cam, calm down. I'm just wondering what's that on the back of your neck?" He said.

I couldn't believe my brain wasn't processing this fast enough.

"What?" I asked, really not understanding.

"I saw this thing on the back of your neck…" He repeated, his voice trailing off. He started turning me around so he was facing my back and lifted my hair slowly. And at the time I _still_ didn't get it. I thought he was talking about dirt or maybe a pen mark. Wait. Why would I have a pen mark on the back of my neck anyway? Or maybe he was talking about some scars from our missions but apparently I was wrong.

"What do you see?" I asked.

"Umm…does a bunch of numbers mean anything to you?" He asked back and I can hear the confusion in his voice.

And at that moment it finally sunk in. All I was hearing.

My eyes widened at it felt like everything disappeared around me.

I was about ready to faint. My body suddenly felt cold and I brushed my hair behind my shoulders quickly, my breathing deep, fast and uneven.

I felt like I couldn't think. Couldn't see. Couldn't feel.

I could barely hear Zach call my name and in the back of my mind I thought I was dreaming until Zach gripped my shoulders and continued calling my name.

I couldn't even swear mentally. Nothing made sense.

The only thing that consumed me was a flashback, remembering it perfectly.

2 years ago when the flock and I were running for our lives away from all the drama 1 eraser caught me. It was an ordinary day. We were running in the streets of New York City and I was hauled back suddenly, Angel's hand slipping out of mine as an eraser swung me around and carried me away from them. The eraser was so strong and nothing I did would let him let go of me. He was actually laughing as I punch, kicked, elbowed, bit, screamed and clawed at him. It was really pointless and I thought I was dead meat. Then I remember that one second when we were bolting through the streets at lightning speed and in the next he just _collapsed _like his leg were just chopped off at that moment. He fell forward as I fell backward with so much force I saw stars when my head cracked on the pavement. I got out from under him and stared at him. His unmoving lifeless body. _What happened?_ I thought and I didn't understand why he just _fell_ like that. Fang helped me stand and I knew he was about to beat the eraser to a pulp when I told him he was dead. Fang checked his pulse and looked back up at me to nod. He gave me this knowing look and I had a flashback to 5 years ago when I was 9 and we hear scientists' conversations about life spans and expiration dates. Fang checked the back of the eraser's neck and sure enough he had those 6 digits printed on the back of his neck that ended his life. He was so strong and unshakable but that tattoo changed everything. Those 6 digits…

That's what I had on the back of mine.

That vivid flashback lasted for about 3 seconds when I was pulled back to reality. Zach was looking at me now with his eyebrow raised, his face saying _'What the hell is this?'_

And obviously I couldn't tell about the mutant and genetics crud so I lied.

"Oh. Oh, OH! That!" I said, stalling while trying to come up with an excuse. Then when I finally had it, I laughed like it was a joke and I thought I sounded very convincing. "That's nothing! This crazy night back in Arizona you know, and I got drunk and it was all downhill from there…" I said, the whole alibi forming in my head. I couldn't tell him it was a temporary thing because there's a chance he could see it again? I dunno. Maybe.

I was nodding and smiling like it was no big deal but I was mentally having a panic attack that I was trying to shut up in my head and I was holding back tears that were threatening to fall.

"Cam!" Zach screamed at me.

"What?" I asked innocently, scared he might see past the lie. Didn't teenagers normally get drunk and go crazy or was it just in the movies? Oh please don't let him figure it out…

"What do you mean what? You have a freakin' tattoo?!" He shouted and I shushed him. But he still went on. "You're under-aged! You're 15! What the hell! How'd you get this?" He pointed towards my neck.

I tried to go for the 'here's the story' kind of tone. "Well I have friends who have connections, but it's a secret." I said, putting my finger to my lips.

"Cam, I'm serious. What were you thinking?" He asked incredulously.

"Well I wasn't thinking. I was drunk." I shrugged. _Crap, crap, crap. Please don't let him notice! Please let him fall for this pathetic excuse of a lie._

"Oh my God, Cam. What the hell. How could you recklessly get drunk with your friends and unconsciously get a tattoo?! Of a bunch of number that didn't even mean anything to you?!" He closed his eyes and did a facepalm. I was momentarily relieved that he fell for it but there were bigger problems.

"The past is past. Let it go, Zach." I said, using my cheery voice and smiling at him.

"Does you family know about this? Does James know about this?" He looked at me again, questioningly.

"No." I said sheepishly. I swear to God, they can not know about this.

"Oh my God. When did this happen?" He asked.

"About a year ago." I said calmly but my heart was beating so fast and it wasn't because I was scared of Zach's scolding. The bigger issue was filling my mind, consuming my thoughts now.

"Oh jeez…" He said, doing another facepalm. He was so worried for me and I didn't understand. It was my body anyway. Why did he care so much that I was 'reckless' that 1 time? I thought to myself. But the bigger issue overlapped this thought and I had to make things clear with him. I put my hands to his face to make him look at me and said in a nice but meaningful voice.

"Zach. Zach, listen to me. This is a secret. My family doesn't know about it. Not even James knows about this, alright? So you have to _promise_ me you won't tell anyone. Any. One. Understood?" I made my voice clear. I had to know he understood.

He looked into my eyes and nodded solemnly. I let go of his face and leaned back on the table. I really wonder why he cared so much.

We were both looking off into the distance and I was suddenly glad Iggy wasn't around when Zach brought it up and that Fang wasn't in our line of sight.

"So was it painful?" He asked, still not looking at me. I was surprised he was still asking questions about it and I just tried and answered nonchalantly.

"Kinda. I was drunk remember, but I still sorta felt it." I said when in truth I didn't know how it felt like at all. Was it like a blade scrapping on flesh 'cause I got that a lot.

"What were you drunk on anyway?" He said, chuckling but still not looking at me.

"Umm… I really don't remember. We were doing shots and I got a couple of other drinks so…" I said, trailing off. I almost blanked out on that question because I have _never_ gotten drunk in my entire life and I didn't know anything about drink names or whatever. I wasn't a get-drunk-and-wake-up-in-someone-else's-bathroom type of girl. In truth, I'm probably more responsible and paranoid that a lot of students in this school at the age of 15 that it wasn't even healthy anymore.

"Must've been real drunk…" He laughed and I laughed awkwardly too. "Haha. Sure was!"

"So you've been hiding it this whole time?"

"Apparently. I actually forgot about it." I said. "When you don't think about something you're hiding, it's much easier to hide." I said, though I doubt I'd be able to forget about this.

"Mmm…" He said and we were quiet for a while again. After a minute of finally not having to lie to his face he turned to look at me suddenly.

"Cam, I'm sorry I over-reacted. I know it's your choice and everything but I don't want you to do something you'll regret." He said, looking into my eyes. I just nodded.

He started to stand up and pick up his backpack. I looked towards the snow-covered road and saw Zach's mom, Mrs. Anderson, waiting in her car, not even needing to go down to call him.

I stood up too and saw that Iggy was actually with Fang and his friends all along. Thank goodness he didn't come over after all.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Zach said, smiling at me and added. "And your secret is safe with me."

I smiled back at him and was relieved only by a bit because even though I could stop Zach from telling the other about this, I couldn't stop my death from happening.

A few minutes later, mom arrived with Ella, Nudge, Gazzy and Angel already inside.

"Sorry I took so long, there was a bit of traffic to get here." She said, smiling.

"It's alright." I said, smiling back and getting in the car.

All the kids were crammed in the back, playing some game so Iggy, Fang and I all filed in the front row, with me in the middle.

I sighed, exhausted. I didn't want to think about anything right now, I just wanted to sleep.

"You tired, Max?" my mom asked, eyeing me through the rear view mirror.

"Yeah…"

"But we barely did anything today." Iggy said.

"Tired _mentally_." I said.

"Oh."

Then Fang pulled my head towards his shoulder so that I was leaning on him. "You should sleep then. Take a rest from the real world. I'll wake you when we get home." He said.

I just nodded into his shoulder and the last thing I felt was him kissing the top of my head.

* * *

**Aww.**

**And yes Zach. Of all people. **

**I wanted to show to you guys what a good friend he is and stuff and that he cared so much. :D **

**Anyway, R&R!**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	4. That Jaded Feeling

**Sorry for not updating so long. There's so much stuff goin' on right now but that's not really a good excuse. Haha.**

**Thank you reviewers! Again! :D You make me happy.**

**Yes, reviews make me happy. Even the ones that criticize (but please don't be rude or mean) because it fuels me to write better and faster. So review people! **

**Tell your friends and all to read the fic! I hope to at least get 4 for this chapter even if it's short. ;)**

**(Sorry this AN is so long) but to cut to the chase, I've already read Fang: A Maximum Ride novel, the 6****th**** book in the series by James Patterson and wow. **

**It sucked. Wait, I'm straying…**

**Okay, so firstly, I am saying it now. I have already typed out some chapters and I have the whole story in my mind already so I DID NOT COPY THE 6****TH**** BOOK IN ANY WAY.**

**I've been thinking about the plot for my story in my mind since August (I know, it took me long enough .) and at first I didn't want to make it a fanfic but then the whole story just formed in my head so I just had to type it out. I will tell you now the similarities between Fang: AMRN and my fic so that you won't get mad at me but if you don't want to be spoiled (for Fang: AMRN and/or my story) just skip the next paragraph and read the next chapter. :) Enjoy!**

**Similarities with Fang: AMRN and my fic: **

**- Max loses her position as leader of the flock but technically in Fang: AMRN Angel overthrows Max while in my story she gets fed up and gives it up.**

**- Angel becomes both a bitch in the stories but in Fang: AMRN she's an even bigger bitch. No joke.**

**- Max leaves when her position as leader is 'taken' but in Fang: AMRN Fang follows her and in mine…eh. Not so much. Haha!**

**-Max is both oh so forgiving in the stories. I swear, she's not as bad ass as she used to be. :|**

**- Fang would be confusing in the stories. I really don't know how to write him (and neither does JP apparently. No offense.) but in Fang: AMRN he'd be super kaduper OOC. (Um hello. He freakin' **_**giggled hysterically**_** when they were in Vegas. .) Fang also becomes deep in our stories. I mean, who knew he had so much pent-up emotions…**

**That's about all the similarities. I think. ;) Now go read the next chapter! :P**

* * *

I woke up feeling very uncomfortable on a sofa. I felt hot and sticky and my hair clung to my face and neck as I twisted around. I looked around me and I realized I was already at home on the sofa in the living room. I don't remember getting home and I don't remember walking to the living room and falling asleep again. What the hell…

It was very dark in here as I only saw the faint outlines of the furniture around me.

The living room on the first floor was big and 2 out of the 4 walls were completely glass, facing the outside of the house so that we could see the vast white fields completely covered in snow that were beautiful in the sunset when red touched white.

But the sun has set hours ago and I only saw the darkness.

How long was I asleep?

It was eerily quiet and I had a strange overwhelming feeling that I was all alone at home so I quickly got to my feet and rushed upstairs, trying not to think how unusually still things were. When I got to my room the panic left me slowly and I decided to take a shower because I was all sweaty and tense.

I walked inside my bathroom which had white tiles and was painted white and powder blue everywhere. I quickly took off my uniform and dumped it in the hamper and stepped into the shower. I adjusted the water so that its temperature was burning hot and when the water is burning hot it helps me relax, and when I'm relaxed I can think straight.

Everything seemed kind of dream-like at the moment. Maybe Fang carried me to the sofa, seeing me so tired or something. Did I actually go to school today? What were the lessons? Did I actually get through Mr. Smith's lecture alive? What did me and my friends talk about in lunch? What happened…?

I felt so jaded and despite the shower, I still couldn't think straight. Ugh.

I just…couldn't seem to relax.

I just want this day over with. If today even happened 'cause it sure didn't feel like it. It feels like I'm having a hangover and I didn't even do anything. Maybe a good night's sleep would clear the mess in my head.

I grabbed my towel and dried myself up, just squeezing the water out of my hair and letting it drip down my back. I wrapped the towel around my body under my arms and walked towards the mirror.

It was all fogged up when I looked at it due to the hot water and I wiped it off with my palm. I grabbed my comb on the counter and started working on all the tangles and knots in my hair, sweeping it all in one side when I saw a dark smudge flash on my back. I held my hair up and turned around; twisting my neck around to see what it was when I screamed.

* * *

**And now, I am going to rant about Fang: AMRN (I WARN YOU NOW TO LEAVE AND CLICK TO THE NEXT CHAPTER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED!) because it was just so O_o.**

**Everyone was so out of character, Angel so unbalanced it's crazy, Max suddenly has some red in her hair for Christ's sake! (could we say, Red Head Wonder much?), Erasers are suddenly back like, WHUUTT??, Dylan's FAILED attempt to commit suicide, Dylan sounds hot and all but he's the biggest softie so that's not really a hot quality and the flock are just props or something 'cause it's mostly about Max, Fang, Angel and Dylan. *rolls eyes***

**The book's just so EH. Since when did Max ever want to give the kids tattoos when they're afraid of needles...? And I can't believe Valencia was totally okay with Max being so hopelessly in love with Fang that she can't live without him! I mean, she's such an understanding mom. She's so cool. Allowing her daughter to breakdown and give up over some guy…**

**I'm being sarcastic if you didn't notice.**

**And maybe they should have gotten married! Because Fang gave her this ring anyway and I lost count of how many times they made out! Ugh.**

**I'm sorry but I'm very disappointed. -__- :'(**

**Since I ranted I will post the next chapter along with this. ;)**


	5. Bathroom Party!

**Sorry that sometimes they get a little OOC. I'm not James Patterson and if you haven't noticed, Max and the flock are kinda, sorta OOC too. Just compare book 1 to book 6. Really.**

**I don't see people getting mad at James Patterson. :P Even if he is the real author… And that just shows that the flock is changing. ;)**

The day's events flowed right back into me, every single detail and I took in the last few minutes by the tree past the school's gates when I was with Zach. What he told me, every lie I told him, what this tattoo mean. I think I faintly understood why I forget it all ever happened. I _forced_ myself to forget. I didn't want to remember. I _don't_ want to remember. I pushed it to the back of my mind, hoping I was just dreaming. But this tattoo is just evidence that I wasn't dreaming at all and all of this is very real. I actually have the expiration date. I was going to die.

Rewind to the part where I start screaming my head off and pause. See, my flock knows I don't scream when Jeb's around the house. I don't scream nor cry if I break a few bones. I _didn't_ scream when my massive headaches or the Voice suddenly popped into my head. And I _don't_ scream when we get a surprise Math test. Okay, maybe I do scream on the inside… But the point is, to sum it all up, I rarely scream even though _a lot_ of things in my life are scream-worthy. I'd only ever really scream if I was facing certain death, which I have faced a lot, but even then it was only a few times. So why did I scream when something I already knew finally sink in? Well, stupidly, because I didn't expect it. And stupidly, because I was hazed at the moment and it woke up all my senses and turned it to hyper-drive. So unfortunately for me, when my scream echoed and reverberated throughout the whole house, it set off a lot of alarms and you know what happens next.

One second, I was staring at myself with wide panicked eyes in the mirror half-naked and in the next everybody rushing in the bathroom. _Everybody._

"Max, are you okay?" That was Angel.

"Max, is something wrong?" And there's Fang.

"MAX!" Nudge.

"What's the problem?" Ella.

"Why'd you scream?" Gazzy.

What's going on?" Iggy.

"I'll save you!" And oh look, Total. The whole flock was here. Let's get the party started.

Note to bitter sarcasm.

Everyone just came running in that even Iggy slipped on the wet floor and landed on his back a few feet away from where I was, dripping wet and butt-naked, the only thing covering me a towel.

Heat and mortification flooded through me and I felt my face and pretty much my whole body turn red as I turned around so that my back was facing towards them, "WHAT THE HELL? Everyone OUT!" I shouted.

"Oh my God…" Gazzy breathed and ran out the bathroom at full speed.

"What? What's going on?" Iggy asked, confusion written all over his face as he tried to get up off the floor.

"Max, why'd you scream?" Fang asked, crossing his arms over his eyes, squinting because he wasn't sure if he should scout the place for danger or cover his eyes from the unthinkable.

Ella helped Iggy to his feet and brought him out of the room with Nudge at their heels.

"Just. Get. Out." I said deadly, noticing that Angel and Fang were still standing there like idiots.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Angel asked.

"Never better. Just dandy. Lovely actually, thanks for asking. Now if you don't mind, I'd like it very much if you would both leave me to change since I'm practically NAKED HERE!" I shouted.

They both filed out along the lines of "sorry" and when I was finally left alone in the bathroom, I sighed, swept my hair to one side and checked the back of my neck again with shaking fingers.

09-93-01

I was so dead. Literally.

After crying and panicking in the bathroom for about 10 minutes, I decided to get a grip on myself and I changed into shorts and a t-shirt off the top of my closet which read 'turn that frown upside down' and a smiley printed in the middle of it. The irony…

Afterwards, I reluctantly headed for the living room where everyone was gathered.

When I entered, the first thing I heard was Iggy's chuckle. I wish no one explained what had happened to him. I tried to ignore him as I sat in between Ella and Fang but I knew he wasn't about to let it go just yet.

"Wanting some attention, Max?" Iggy said with a grin, wiggling his eyebrows.

"You're sick, you know that…" I answered back, not looking at him.

"MY EYES ARE SCARRED FOR LIFE!" Gazzy wailed.

"Gazzy, I was wrapped in a towel…" I replied meanly and he said, "Well…STILL!"

I rolled my eyes and tried to concentrate watching TV.

Ella touched my hand and smiled at me.

"You sure you okay, Max?" She asked, concerned.

"I'm fine, Ella. I just…I thought I saw something…" I said, shaking my head.

"What? Your face?" Iggy retorted, without skipping a beat and started cracking up.

Wow. How mature.

"Could you not be such a jerk right now?" I said, standing up, glaring at him. If only he knew about my expiration date, he would understand the dread I feel and actually take something seriously in his life.

Oh shit.

I couldn't think about it. I can't think about it. Not when Angel's within mind-reading range. I quickly dismissed the topic from my head and tried to cover it up with something else.

Fang pulled me back to sit down, grasping my hand from beside me rubbing soothing circles on the back of my hand and actually smiled at me, reassuring me.

God I loved him. Even when he didn't know what the hell was going on he was still there for me.

I smiled back at him and tightened the grip on his hand. I leaned my head against his shoulder.

"Okay, okay! Sorry! Jeez…" Iggy said, his hands up in surrender. I heard Angel giggle from somewhere to my right and when I looked at her, she flashed me a brilliant white smile, teeth and all, at me. I laughed back.

Things were quiet for a moment and I started listening to the show when Iggy just _had_ to open his big mouth again.

"I wonder what would have happened if she wasn't wrapped around her towel…" he muttered under his breath.

Okay, he was just asking for it.

I shot him a dirty look before I strode off towards him fast. He tried to jump over the couch and make a break for it, keyword: _tried_. I grabbed his collar from the back, spun him around and stared right up into his unseeing eyes. My face was about 3 inches away from his as I was yanking his collar downwards so that we were face to face.

"Just _stop_, okay? You _won't_ speak about what happened a while ago ever. No innuendos, no green jokes, _which_ I know you have about a million up your sleeve. Comprende?" I asked steely. He just nodded.

I went back to where Fang was and sat right back down when I noticed Nudge was examining me from the floor by the couch and asked, "Max, did you cry?"

Aw crud.

Everyone looked at me now and I bet my eyes looked red and puffy.

Was it that obvious?

"Umm…something flew into my eye…" I said pathetically.

"Both your eyes?" Fang asked, raising an eyebrow.

Dammit!

"Uhh…no. It uhh…really hurt so I guess I cried." I said which was even lamer.

I had to be conscious of how I looked now. Oh jeez…did I really just actually say that?

I had to make sure now that my neck would always be covered by my hair. No ponytails or braids…

Dang it! I shouldn't think about it!

I looked around and saw Nudge staring at me worriedly. I smiled at her reassuringly and she smiled back reluctantly.

When I looked at Angel, she had a confused expression on her face but when she saw me staring at her, she smiled back, well…angelically.

'_You should tell them the truth, Maximum.'_

I jumped a bit in my seat and gasped. Thankfully, Ella was the only one who felt it and looked at me, confused.

'_WHAT DO YOU WANT?' _I shouted at the Voice mentally, if that was even possible.

'_I want you to tell them the truth.'_

'_No. They can't know it just yet.'_

'_It's better to know something awful now and prepare for it than knowing it by surprise. Besides, you can't keep secrets from the flock.'_

'_Ugh. Fortune cookie shit again. And everybody has their secrets! Bug off!' _I fought back.

'_Maximum, no one makes it out alive. Not you, not even the flock.'_

'_That's great. And you're telling me this why…?'_

'_Maximum, know that you will face more problems than just death. And I'm telling you, the flock should know about this. Think about it.'_

'_WHAT THE HELL COULD BE WORST THAN DEATH?'_

'_Just think about it, Maximum. Tell your flock the truth and make decisions wisely.'_

"WHAT THE HELL'S THAT SUPPOSE TO MEAN?" I said to the Voice, standing up, only realizing then that I said my last reply out loud.

Oh man. Why do I keep doing this to myself?

"What's what suppose to mean?" asked Gazzy. His eyes were the size of everyone else's: the moon. Except for Fang, of course.

'_See what you've done, Voice?'_ I said, not expecting a reply.

'_You've brought this upon yourself. Maximum. But this gives you the chance to explain.'_

"Grruugh!" I shrieked, which was a mix of a groan and a scream.

"Max, are you okay?" Angel asked but I was barely aware of the flock's reactions.

'_Maximum, you're bringing more attention to yourself. Just like what Iggy said…' _the Voice taunted.

"CAN YOU MIND YOUR OWN BUISNESS AND GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HEAD!" I screamed and ran up to my room.

I was already in my pajamas, under the covers reading City of Glass when I heard a faint knock on the door. I didn't really want guests tonight but when I saw that it was Fang, I smiled at him and he came over to the other side of the bed and lied down next to me. He faced me, legs crossed and hands behind his head, such an obvious question on his face that I knew he knew I knew what he was asking.

"It's nothing, Fang. Really. It's just the stupid Voice's bothering me again. I almost forgot how annoying and obnoxious it was." I said and sighed.

"You wanna talk about it?" He asked me.

"No. Not really." I said shaking my head and pulling the covers up higher. He just nodded and started stroking my hair. It was quiet but it was a comfortable kind of quiet.

I turned around so that I was facing him and moments like these, I feel like life was worth it or even more than that. I sighed, content. When you get to be with the person you love most in the world and nothing bad is happening, you feel like you own the world. Whenever I was with Fang I felt that I was overflowing with joy it was almost painful. But right now, I couldn't really think about it and I fell asleep right on Fang's shoulder.

**OH! You know I've got that shirt! Haha! The one with the 'turn that frown upside down' with the smiley in the middle shirt. I got it from my aunt. ;)**

**And I mentioned the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare because it's one of my favorite series and so very awesomely awesome I love it.**

**Review and tell your friends of my crappy fanfic if you please.**

**Thanks!**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	6. Symptoms of Insanity

**OMG OMG GHFDUIGODSFHGIJODH!! I'm so very sorry I haven't posted in a while but I'm kinda busy 'cause I'm moving houses but that a poor excuse 'cause we just got our summer vacation so I'll try and update more now! :D Enjoy!**

I woke up, blinking at the sunlight coming from the balcony doors. I yawned, wanting to go back to sleep but my body told me to get up and face today so I was about to sit up and stretch when I felt warm air tickling the back of my neck. I froze for a second then relaxed as I realized it was just Fang. His arms were wrapped around my torso, his head a little higher than mine. My wings were smooshed with my back towards him and our legs were tangled together but I still felt very comfortable like this. I guess he just fell asleep here. I thought for a moment, how things felt _right_ like this. I kind of didn't want this to end. But of course, we had school. Ugh.

"Fang, wake up." I said, shaking him slightly. He woke up, blinking sleep out of his eyes. He looked around him for a while, taking in the situation and smiled at me. Not a half-smile. Not a smirk. A full-fledged smile except without the teeth. He held me closer.

"You know _Cam_, if anyone else knew about this, they'd think we were so disturbed." He said seriously then chuckled.

I smiled back and rolled my eyes. "I know, right? God Nick, we're so incest it's disgusting."

We just stayed like that in silence for a while since we woke up a few minutes before the alarm. After a while, I turned around and faced him, our faces inches away.

"We've got school, brother dearest." I said, and kissed him on the cheek. Then we both sat up, sighing.

Eventually, he got up and kissed the top of my head before leaving me alone in my room.

School days always just had to ruin moments like these that I love.

"Last call: Shadows or I'm Falling for You? Jeez, what a stupid title…" Bris said, leaning forward while we were fighting over what movie to watch.

"Really guys? I'm Falling for You? It sounds so stupid! I mean, who in the right mind would watch it let alone name a movie _I'm Falling for You_?" Mitzi said, rolling her eyes taking a sip of her Coke.

"Guys, I don't want to watch Shadows! The scariest thing I've ever watched was Premonition and I _still_ think about it!" Izzy said from beside me.

"Premonition's not even horror. It's suspense." Iggy said, dipping a french fry in ketchup and popping it into his mouth.

"Exactly!" Izzy screamed.

"Well, I prefer Shadows because I don't think I wanna die laughing. Whatta bout you, Cam?" Zach turned to ask me.

"Any's fine with me." I said, stealing one of Iggy's fries. He tried to smack my hand away but I still eventually got some, stuffing my mouth.

"5 to 1. Come on guys! This'll be fun." Mitzi said, smiling.

What's so fun about watching people get possessed and kill other people by ripping them limb to limb ruthlessly?

After a boring game of baseball (our team lost by 1 point) we all just planned to meet at the food court in the mall.

The usual happened: mom picked us up at school. We passed by for the younger kids. And then there was the ride home.

I told mom that Ig and I were going out with a bunch of friends and she just said to text message her when we got home and to take care.

I immediately went to my room to change when as usual, Nudge and Angel burst into my room in the next second. See, the thing is, whenever I hung out with my friends they always, _always_ insist on dressing me up. I don't know why and I don't _see_ why but they just do. They explained that now that we can afford good clothes, we should make the best out of it and it's important to look good and that looking good will make you feel good and blah blah blah. You get the picture.

Of course I always say _no _because really, who wears like, Dolce to watch a movie or go bowling? P.S. I learned Dolce from Nudge. Long story.

"Max," Nudge said, using her listen-to-me-and-follow-what-I'm-just-about-say-because-I-said-so voice. "Just. This. Once. PU-LEASE! I mean, what's wrong with dressing up for once in your _life_?"

"What's _right_ with dressing up for once in my life?" I said, picking the first shirt on the top of the pile and throwing it on the bed.

She stopped to think about what I just said and after a while she just shook her head.

"Don't you _want_ to look good on front of your friends?"

"You don't need fancy-schmancy clothes to look good. And besides, why would they care?"

"You're missing the point! Don't you want to feel good about yourself?" Nudge complained, throwing her arms in the air in exasperation.

I was about to retort back when Angel cut in and said, "How about we make you a deal?"

Oh wow. I was making business transaction with my sisters now.

"How about you leave me to change?"

"Okay. You let us choose what you wear and we'll…do your chores for a week?" Nudge blurted, ignoring what I just said.

Was it _that_ fun to dress up a person?

"No."

"I'll do your homework for a week?" Angel put in. And don't be surprised because she's really capable of doing it.

"Nope." I said, popping the p.

"We won't interfere with your love life for a week!" Angel tried but I shook my head.

Why the heck we they so adamant about dressing me up?

"We won't cause trouble for a week! All four of us!" Nudge said, referring to the both of them plus Iggy and Gazzy.

Right. Like she'd be able to stop the pyromaniacs.

"Okay, sure."

"_Really?_" Nudge sounded ecstatic, her eyes lighting up.

"No." I snorted.

"_Aw, come on Max!_"

I smiled smugly at them, exhausted internally all the time with their persistence. And this will happen again next time, and the time after that, _and _the time after that and – wait for it – the time after that.

Oh my God.

I sighed loudly and flopped onto my bed beside Angel, who was probably trying to think of ways to convince me aside from using Bambi eyes, which I've gotten really good at to avoiding, as Nudge went through my clothes and mumbling time to time, "This is so cute…" or "Too bad Max would never wear you…" or something along the same lines.

I would rather just give in once than have to put up with this all the time…

Suddenly, I had a brilliant idea and I bolted upright.

"I've got it," I said, and they looked at me with wide, uncomprehending eyes. "I let you guys dress me up today and you have to promise not to bother me about it anymore. At all. Just this once and nothing more. This is the most I'll ever budge and this offer only lasts until today." I said.

They thought about it for a while, looking at each other and after 10 seconds past, Nudge nodded and Angel grinned wide.

"Okay Max. We dress you up for today we promise not to bother you anymore." Angel said.

I sighed in relief.

It's funny because one, they never really cared about fashion or clothes before, why did they suddenly take up an interest in it? Two, why the _heck_ did they care so much? And three, usually in the past, whatever I say the first time, goes. There were no arguments whatsoever and they followed me.

What happened?

In the end, they chose this black tube dress shirt thing. From waist up, it was made of black lace with intricate swirls, wrapped around my torso so tight like a corset I couldn't breathe. It focused on my cleavage (Nudge mumbled something that sounded like _bustier_?) which I was _so_ not happy about.

Then from waist down, up until the end of my butt was black cloth, dark and silky that pleated and swayed whenever I walked.

I don't even remember buying this.*

I felt very conscious about the idea of going around the mall in _this_. So vulnerable and _girly._ My arms were exposed and my wings were folded so tight against my back, the zipper of the dress shirt making it uncomfortable.

When they showed me the shoes I was wearing I stared at them in horror.

They chose these boots that stops just below my knees with thick straps criss-crossing the front all the way. I would've thought they were pretty sweet if it weren't for the 2 inch heels. When I got a glimpse of the back of the shoe, I shook my head immediately. Well, the heels were just 2 inches but believe me, I may be good, but I ain't _that_ good. Good enough to wear heels without tripping or something.

"No way, Jose." I said.

"We had a deal." Nudge said to me seriously.

I stared back at her hard before grabbing the boots and putting them on.

They forced make up on me (you could just imagine me whining), using the now opened powders on my face, applying it lightly. (I don't know how they know how to put make up at the age of 7 and 12)

They both whooped and slapped high fives.

When I thought it was over, Nudge loaned me her thick silver bracelets and Angel handed me a loose thin jacket with sleeves that stopped before my elbows, completely made out of lace to complete my look

Oh gee. I feel so completely safe and secure now.

I put on my black studs since I was going along with their plan anyway, remembering how I pierced my own ears with an eraser's tooth 2 years ago. I laughed internally.

Once we were done, they made me stand on front of the mirror and I studied myself.

My hair was glossy and wavy (they put this gunk in my hair), a mix of blond and mostly brown tumbling past my shoulders neatly. My eyes were now like, emphasized what with the black stuff and my lips were red against my fairly tanned skin. The shirt dress hugged my body until my waist, my curves evident. I didn't recognize myself.

When I raised my hand to brush hair off my face, the person in the mirror did the same thing and it startled me.

"You look amazing, Max!" Angel screeched. I smiled at her.

"Thanks, I guess. I'd better get going." I said, stuffing my wallet and my phone in my pocket.

I walked downstairs, the girls still on my heels and saw Iggy far into the living room, just pacing. He was wearing the typical checkered polo, jeans and vans. When he felt us go into the living room, he stopped and looked in our direction.

"Max, something feels different about you." He said, cocking his head to the side. I rolled my eyes. I didn't know how he sensed it but he just really can. It's cool and freaky at the same time.

"The girls ambushed me. God, I'm such a pushover." I said. He smiled.

"Well, since it's the one and only time you'll let us get to dress you we thought we should make you extra extra pretty!" Angel gushed.

"Uh. Thanks Angel… Hey, have you seen Fang?" I added, wanting to say goodbye to him. Iggy just shrugged.

"Maybe he's taking a solo flight. I'll text you when he comes back." Nudge said.

I always go into panic whenever someone in the flock goes missing but I was sure Nudge was right. He just wanted some me time.

"Well, okay. Nudge you're in charge until Ella comes home. Please eat dinner on time and go to bed early even if it's Friday. Call me if there's trouble, keep everything under control. Mom said she's be back by 9-ish so don't wait up for any of us. Bye guys!" I said, kissing Angel and Nudge on the top of their heads.

I grabbed my keys from the drawer in the kitchen before we strode to the garage.

I don't really like taking my car whenever we went out but you know, _we had to blend in._

No flying in public, no nothing fun.

My car's some shiny red convertible (I honestly thought people only got those cars in stories) that I don't know the model of. _Yeah, sure. I was totally blending in with some big shot car that was so not conspicuous in any way at all. _Note to sarcasm.

I was okay with any car at all. It could have been an old beaten up Volkswagen beetle for all I care, really, but I had no choice.

My car was a gift from Jeb a.k.a. daddy dearest. Maybe he was thinking he could make it up to me for all the times he treated us like crap through material things but I see it as nothing.

Why do you need a fast, shiny expensive car when you have fast, shiny, multi-million dollar project wings?

My thoughts exactly.

Iggy got into the passenger seat while I climbed into the driver's side and I drove away.

"What movie will I be listening to again?" Iggy asked and I chuckled. "Shadows. The scary movie." He just nodded.

I turned on the radio and we unconsciously started singing together rather drunk-like. We then started talking about music and then we reached the topic of Fang's music.

"It's cool, he learns so fast." Iggy said.

No shocker here: Fang took up guitar lessons before school started and he's been practicing often ever since that he's gotten really good at it.

It was pretty obvious actually since he once said in his blog that he'd like to take up the guitar and now he has.

He has 1 acoustic guitar, his very first one displayed in his room and 3 other electric guitars: this black shiny one, this dark blue shiny one and a twelve string.

He was just about to tell me this song he played a while back with an incredible guitar solo when I realized we just pulled up into the mall's parking lot.

After I parked, we entered the mall and walked towards the food court to see everyone waiting for us.

Bris was slumped on a chair with his legs spread out, staring blankly into space looking like a complete idiot. He was wearing chucks, jeans and an ordinary green shirt that said 'I know you wish this shirt was invisible.'

Oh gross.

Mitzi sat across him, texting away on her cell, her legs crossed. She was wearing wedges (I knew this because of Nudge, blame her. Again.), a denim mini skirt and a tight t-shirt with fancy bead work on the front. She was gorgeous without even trying.

Izzy was seated on Mitzi's right, her hands folded across her lap neatly. She was wearing a white empire cut dress shirt with a thick red ribbon tied around her waist, flared jeans and red ballet flats.

Lastly, Zach sat across Izzy, drumming his fingers while tapping his foot under the table. He was wearing a dark blue long sleeved t-shirt under a white and light blue checkered polo unbuttoned, jeans and vans. He was the first to look up and notice me and Ig.

"Look! Cam and James are here!" He told everyone. They all looked up and stood.

"Oh, I was about to text you." Mitzi said, smiling as they came towards us.

"Whoa. Cam, nice outfit." Bris said, winking at me. Of course he was only joking. I chuckled lightly and punched him on the shoulder.

"Let's go, let's go! The movie's starting soon! I wanna get good seats in the front." Zach said, grinning.

I heard Izzy groan beside me and I turned to her.

"Don't worry Iz, you can sit beside me." I said, genuinely. The thing about Iz is that she's so nice, you couldn't really deny her anything or hurt her feelings.

She smiled at me and we all walked towards the cinema, chatting among each other.

I was leaning on my arm, my cheek on my palm, watching the movie just for the sake of watching it.

Okay, this movie was _so_ fail.

The blood didn't look real, the deaths were kind of exaggerated and if you look closely, you would notice all the mistakes with the script and the acting and the lighting.

I honestly admit there were some parts that I got surprised and jumped a little in my seat but it wasn't something that could give me nightmares. Or even actually stay in my mind long enough to think about it.

I was seated in between Izzy and Iggy, leaning left and right over and over again. Right to explain something to Iggy if he didn't catch it and leaning left so that Izzy could clutch my arm and practically cut off my blood circulation.

People screamed and yelled all throughout the movie. I looked over at Bris, Mitzi and Zach to see how they were holding up.

Bris was hugging Mitzi's arm, his face ready to duck behind it if necessary.

Mitzi covered her face with her hands, peeping in between the spaces of the fingers when it wasn't a scary part.

And Zach was huddled up all on his own is his polo which was now draped over his body. He would dip into it whenever the scary background music starts playing and would peep time to time.

I started paying attention to the movie towards the end and the scene was that they had to burn the last of the possessed bodies. The camera turned away for a while, focusing on the remaining main characters that didn't get possessed and died while they talked and when one of them gasped and yelled, the camera swiveled back to the burning remains and all that was left were burn marks but no ashes or bones were left. Camera zooms out, focuses on the remaining main characters and the end.

Ooohh…how scary.

I stood up, stretching.

"Wow. Okay. That will surely give me nightmares! Let's go eat, I'm hungry. I feel like eating Chinese. What about you guys?" I said turning towards them, smiling.

And they were all still frozen in fear.

"Wha-what happened to the bodies…?"

"Ohmigosh. Is there gonna like be a sequel?!"

"I thought they only had to burn the bodies! Why didn't the curse end?!"

Oh jeebus.

"Come on guys, it was just a movie. Let's go eat dinner. Take your mind off it." Iggy said when he stood up, stretching.

Everyone stood up slowly and shakily and I laughed just a little. The film was even a little amateur.

"Come on, come on. Let's go! We don't want Simon coming after you guys now do we?" I said, trying to scare them. Though I must admit, the guy who played Simon was pretty good I got scared sometimes.

They all started pushing and screaming to get out first and I smiled.

If only they saw my life story…

After dinner, we ended up just roaming around the mall. Mitzi ended up buying a few shirts and 2 dresses along the way and I bought candy, sharing it with Zach and Iggy.

I wasn't keeping track of time but when Izzy said she probably had to go, it was already quarter to 10.

"Oh, okay. We'll walk you there. I probably have to go too anyway." Zach said.

We all started walking towards the mall's main entrance when a group of guys who passed by us glanced in our direction.

I've been way too paranoid for my health all my life and when they looked over at me, I had to look back to check and see if they were danger.

When I turned around to see if their faces wrung a bell, my eyes looked straight into the eyes of my brother.

"_Cam?_" He called out to me, stopping in his tracks and looked at me incredulously.

"_F-nick?_" Oh jeez. When will I ever get used to his 'name'?

My group of friends turned around to see why I stopped and when they saw it was my brother, they approached.

"Hey Nick! Fancy seeing you here!" Mitzi said, smiling at him. She always sort of had this tiny crush on him.

"Mitzi, it's a _Friday_. Almost everyone hangs out with their friends after school, idiot." Bris said and they started arguing. There they go again…

"What are you doing here?" I asked him. I don't remember him telling mom nor me that he was going out.

" 'm hanging out with the guys. You remember them right." Fang said normally sounding bored as he gestured towards his friends.

I only noticed now that these were the friends he always hung out with in school. I knew their faces but I guess we've never really talked aside from like school-related stuff.

By the looks of them they looked nice enough. I'm not sure if Fang really hung out with these types of people because he had to have different friends or if he really cliqued with them.

They stepped forward and I could tell they were looking at me thoughtfully.

I looked around them and recognized Kevin Foster, one of my defenses in our handball game from before.

He smiled at me and I nodded in his direction.

"Kevin." I said.

"Cam." He responded.

Then when I was just about to turn to the rest of them, one of them just suddenly wraps his arms around me and lifts my feet of the ground.

"Cam! Hey hey hey!" He said, grinning. I smiled reluctantly back at him and fought off the urge to whack him in the face. Who was this guy? I recognize his face but no name was coming to mind…

He spun me around for a while then put me back down.

I blinked a couple of times as I faintly heard my friends snicker. Ugh. Those jerks…

"So what's up, lady?" He said, his smile getting impossibly bigger. "I wonder if she remembers me…" I heard him say.

Wow. It's like he read my mind!

Wait. What? I shook my head, a little confused.

This guy had short brown hair, brushed messily to one side. His dark blue eyes were evident and when he smiled, the corner of his eyes crinkled. He looked like a happy-go-lucky type of guy.

Oh God, I had to remember his name…He knew me and I completely blanked on him?

"Uhh…hey yourself." Jeez. I've been going to school for 5 months now and I haven't even memorized Fang's friend's names yet. I'm such a horrible girlfriend/sister.

"Don't mind Josh, Cam. He's deprived of the female population because his 'awesome' skills always make 'em run for cover." The guy right beside him said, rolling his eyes at first and then laughing.

"Shut up, Luke. But you gotta admit, Nick's sister is _adorable_." Josh said grinning again and my jaw almost dropped right then and there.

Oh my God. He just called me _adorable_. It's the end of the world as we know it.

"Guys, leave her alone. She looks freaked." Another guy said, stepping from behind Luke.

Wait! I think I know this guy! His name was Mason…? Akon…? Whut.

He half-smiled at me and I found myself smiling back. "And that's why they never get dates…" He said, exasperated and I chuckled.

Fang looked at me funny.

I could faintly hear my friends talking from behind me and when I remembered they were still there, I felt so awkward now and I wanted to go home.

"So what did you guys do here?" the guy named Luke asked us.

"We watched Shadows," Bris replied. "God, that was stupid. Total waste of my money." He said, shaking his head.

"Oh damn, we were just about to watch it. Oh wells." Kevin said with a shrug.

"Bris, you were practically screaming in my ear like, the whole time." Mitzi said, raising an eyebrow at him. Everyone looked at him.

"Yeah, I could hear you like, 5 seats away." Iggy put in with a straight face.

Zach and I started chucking to ourselves and when I looked over at Fang he was smiling.

"Well whatever. Only _some_ parts were scary." He said, looking away because I knew he was heating up.

They started talking again and I found that I suddenly couldn't think straight anymore.

My mind was filled with…voices. So many voices surrounding me. I bit my lip and looked up, trying to focus my mind.

Then, out of nowhere, some invisible force just freakin' shoved me, making me stumbled and take a few steps back. I blink more a couple of times. _What the fudge was that?_

"Whoa, Cam. Are you okay?" Izzy asked as she was the one who caught me. Some of the others were still talking among themselves, not noticing me thank the Lord but I saw that Luke and the other guy who I didn't catch the name of were looking at me, as well as Iggy and Fang.

"Whoa, what happened to Max…" I heard Fang say.

I looked at him alarmed and he raised his eyebrow again. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself.

"Yeah. I'm fine, just fine." I said, picking myself up.

"Oh God, Luke looks so hot when he looks worried." I heard Izzy say and I whipped around to look at her. Why the hell did she just say that out loud?

"Oh my God, Izzy…" I stared at her.

"What?" She asked innocently.

"You just…you, you…" I said shaking my head. Okay. What's the matter with me?

"I think we should go." I heard Iggy say, cautiously. He was facing my direction, concern all over his face.

"Yeah, I think we should." I said, taking another deep breath. I turned towards Fang. "I'll…I guess I'll see you at home." I said awkwardly.

I turned around and nodded at the rest of the guys and they nodded back. My friends said goodbye to them too and sentences and words swirled around in my head, making my eyes feel hot and fill with tears.

I felt all headache-y now. Crap.

We started going towards the exit and the last thing I heard was Luke say "Oh, she looks _more_ than adorable…"

Oh _jeez_.

* * *

**Hey guys! I know Nudge and Angel seem a little OOC in the makeover part but its part of their change. And also, maybe, sorta, kind of because it's just so fun to write stuff like that! :D**

*** If you're interested, search for 'Buister from H&M All or Nothing by Frida Johnson' in google. It is so purtey. Credits to Frida Johnson whoever she is. :D**

**You can even probably imagine her as Max because she fits the description! Haha! Only realized now…**

**BTW, since most people've already read Fang: AMRN I was thinking of writing another fic. Basically it's about Max and how she adjusts to a life without Fang. :'( I'm still sad about it. The whole flock's in the story including Dylan. :- And I'll switch perspectives with what Fang's doing in his life and stuff like that. Thoughts?**

**Anyvays! Review and spread the love that is my story!**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	7. Sight for Sore Eyes

**Yes, I know I'm new to this and so even the smallest reviews make me happy I can't help but reply to them. :D **

**SharpestSatire: Haha! Thank you! :P And you're going to have to keep reading to find out! And you know, her hair was down. :) She promised herself from then on to like keep it down so they wouldn't find out and stuff. It was mentioned. I'm also sorry if you read my other AN with the spoilers. I just needed to vent on how much Fang sucked. :'( This fic is post MAX and everything that happened in Fang didn't happen so don't worry. My lips are sealed. ;) Lastly, of course there's fax, they're dating! **

**Mythicalcreatures428: Haha! Thanks! Just follow the story, it'll all make sense later on. ;)**

**Bubbley-chan: Maybe. Maybe not. : And about your idea of Max dragging Fang back for the fic I'm thinking of: there will definitely be that struggle. **

**omg URstoryISawesome: Thank you so much! And thanks for the advice :) I'll keep that in mind.**

**Ninjastar945: Thank you! I think I'll start working on it then. ;) It still depends on what others might think but you've definitely made me more 'motivated' to start it. I even already have a whole plot thought out. **

**That's basically it. :) Enjoy!**

I walked to my lunch table with Izzy the next Friday and found that everyone was already there. I took my seat next to Iggy, groaning.

"Ugh! Why the hell do we need to take up History?! Past is past! Students need to focus on what'll be happening in the future like the apocalypse or something, not going into detail about the flippin' Cold War! There's a reason it's called _History_, it should stay in the past!" I said, really stressed for the test tomorrow. I mean, kicking butt and snapping a few necks I can handle. But memorizing years and the methods they used to conquer and all that crap were not in the job description.

"Calm down drama queen." Mitzi said without looking up from her fashion magazine.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" I shrieked. She had _no idea_ what I go through everyday. I deal with school work, projects, tests and presentations and I had to keep good grades. Not only that but it's not like she had a family to take care of, deal with the family problems, worry for everyone when for the past months there's been nothing to worry about, deal with her insane father time to time, stop that mental little Chinese man Mr. Chu because he was still out there somewhere, destroy the different braches of Itex on _school days_, make sure her mom and sister aren't in danger, deal with the pressure, deal with the stupid Voice, take care of myself and did I mention I had to save the whole friggin' _world_?

Yeah. My life was such a breeze.

I slumped forward and buried my face in my arms.

"I know what Ron is," Bris said, his voice serious. "I bet he's like, student by day, superhero by night!"

He could put it that way.

"It's explains why she's always sleepy, and cranky! And why she has such big eye bags…"

He really just _loves_ to push it.

I heard Izzy chuckle and mutter, "The apocalypse? You're kidding me right?"

Oh, if only she knew…

Speaking of the apocalypse, wasn't I _just_ supposed to save the world?

Gosh, it's like they think I'm superwoman or something!

I stayed like this for a few minutes, my mind lingering for a second on a thought then moving on quickly to the next.

…_give us Math homework last week? Wait. What were we learning in Math? Hmm… Was I even paying attention…" _I thought randomly.

I was still thinking about Math when I suddenly felt the need to puke.

Oh crap, what now?

I felt like my innards were launched into the heavens above and landed back on earth with a crash. I sat up straight, gasping loudly.

Everyone at the table looked at me questioningly, their eyebrows raised.

My throat was closing up and it was getting harder for me to breath. What was happening?

My whole body felt hot and I started feeling clammy, my forehead beaded with sweat.

I felt the sudden urge to fly, my wings moving as one with the air around me, the breeze blowing in my face. I imagined myself swallowing gulps full of air, my whole body getting slightly damp from the clouds I flew through. Oh, if only…

Sometimes flying made everything feel better. Whereas some people feel sick riding an airplane way up high in the sky, my wings itched to spread and I longed to shoot upwards so high that I could determine countries from where I hovered.

I needed to get out of here.

I stood up fast, not noticing at that moment that my hands were shaking.

"Ron, are you okay?" Bris asked slowly.

"I need some air." I said monotonously. I really did.

I was about to turn around and run out the cafeteria's double doors when my guts heaved again and my eyes focused on the reason _why_ I felt so sick to my stomach.

My dad was at school.

My eyes widened to the size of car wheels and I spun on my heel swiftly, plopping back down on the bench. I could feel my heart beat in my ears.

"Cam, you're scaring us. What's the matter?" Zach asked but I didn't answer.

It was amazing my body can sense and knows how I feel about Jeb. All strange and weird and queasy and _sick_.

I definitely wasn't scared of him, I knew that much. So why was I all nauseous?

I still had a lot of figuring out to do, especially finding out what I'm suppose to do with my life. But right now I was only focused on 1 thing: avoiding Jeb.

He could have just had a parent-teacher conference or something. Yeah, that's it.

I hated seeing Jeb because sometimes I get really angry that I feel the impulse to rip out his spine and beat him with it and other times just seeing him hurt my heart. It still gets to us, seeing him smile or just seeing him _alive_.

He strode in the cafeteria, his lab gown whooshing behind him.

He kept looking around the room, his head angling this way and that, looking for that specific familiar face: _me._

It's funny really because Jeb looked _nothing_ close to his character in the manga.

Because here's the thing, mad scientists really look _nothing_ like mad scientists. They looked like ordinary doctors, walking around in their lab gowns clutching clip boards. They didn't look crazy at all and if the police ever found out about their illegal researches some might even look innocent.

So sorry to disappoint, but no. Jeb did _not_ have crazy gelled hair and he did_ not_ wear glasses and he definitely did _not_ sport a furry caterpillar on his upper lip.

And that last part was really disgusting.

In reality, he's how he _really_ looked like: His brown hair, a few shades darker than mine, was brush back neatly on his head and his skin was slightly tanned, probably from the California sun. Often times when I glare at him, our heads leveled, I could see his blue eyes clearly with flecks of brown in them. He had a thin nose and his mouth was always, _always_ pulled into this knowing smile. He never smiled with his teeth, just always sort of grinning but in this I-can-drive-you-insane kind of way.

He was just about my height because I was able to glare at him face to face and Fang and Iggy always looked down at him (Ha!) and at the moment he wore a light blue polo, black pants and leather shoes under his white coat, looking very normal.

He continued to look for me while I peeked from the corner of my eye, my head slightly turned.

I could see that some people stopped talking and looked at him because it _was_ kind of unusual for some doctor to come at our school in full doctoring outfit. And was it just me or did he always carry himself in a way that made himself feel more important? Like he was better than everyone else?

Right.

I sat with my back towards him and lowered my head making my hair curtain my face.

"Sorry. I just don't feel too good…" I said, answering the questions on my friend's faces.

"Do you want to go to the nurse's office or something…?" Mitzi asked.

"No, it's okay." I said. They all slowly went back to eating and reading in Mitzi case after studying my face.

I wonder what they see constantly. Me acting all strange and sickly and _weak_. Man…

"James," I whispered under my breath so that only Iggy could hear. His head whipped in my direction and I said to him that one word that made his blood run cold. "_Hintow._"

He suddenly got a determined look on his face and concentrated, listening to see if he could hear if trouble was about to happen.

I couldn't really explain to him now but I just warned him, using our secret language back in the days to tell him something bad might happen.

I looked over discreetly at Fang and saw that he was slightly smiling at something that just happened at his table. The rest of his friends were banging the table and throwing their heads back, laughing. Must've been some joke.

When the whole room started eating again and talking noisily, I thought that Jeb had left.

Keyword: _thought_.

"Cam honey, there you are! Where's your brother?" Jeb said, all of a sudden standing behind me, smiling.

Ugh. Could he not rub it in my face?

"D-dad…" I said and stood up fast. I also realized then that this was the _first_ time I've ever called Jeb _dad_. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello James." He said, acknowledging Iggy. "Are these your friends?" He continued, smiling at my friends.

"Y-yeah," I said and he looked like he was about to say more, probably wanting to meet my friends but I cut him off. "Wait. Dad, _what_ are you doing here?" I asked this time with an edge to my voice.

"Oh. I came to your school because I need to speak with you and your brother." He said.

"Oh." Was all I sreplied. I looked towards Fang again and saw that he was heading this way, a fierce but cautious look in his eyes. When he arrived and stood in front of us, the first thing he said was, "What are _you_ doing here?" his voice annoyed and cold. I saw Izzy flinch next to me from the tone.

"Nick, there you are! I need to speak with you and your sister." He said and started walking towards the cafeteria's doors. Fang and I looked at each other with a what-the-f expression and followed him. Side by side, we walked the path towards the exit with my arms crossed over my chest and Fang's hands shoved into his pockets, clearly pissed and following unwillingly.

"Okay Jeb, what do you want? We're out of hearing range, your innocent little farther act is pissing me off and just seeing you here ruined my day. What is it?" I said steely. We were standing at the end of the hall from the cafeteria's doors after making sure the coast was clear.

"Max, I just came to tell you that you have another mission today. It's in Oregon just to give you a heads up that it'll be far. Please tell the rest of the flock. I'll send you the rest of the details later." He said calmly. I waited for more info but he just smiled at the both of us like some nimrod.

"Wait. That's it? You could've just texted, you know? We have our cells." I said, weary and growing more impatient by the second.

"Oh well, I was just driving by and thought I could just tell you in person." He smiled again.

He was so stupid I can't believe he's a scientist.

"Why'd you call me for?" Fang asked after a while.

"Oh no reason. I just thought it would be funny to see the looks on your faces." He said, smiling even bigger and I let go of all the patience and restraint I was holding back for so long.

I punched him in the gut _hard_ because punching his face would cause serious damage and would be much too obvious. Jeb started wheezing and coughing as he sank to the ground.

"Idiot…" I muttered and Fang and I left him there, lying crumpled on the ground, gasping for air.

"Go, go, GO!" I whisper shouted, urging the flock to run faster to escape.

We _permanently_ deleted a bunch of the files in this folder marked IMPORTANT. (They surely gave us such a hard time!) Then we placed a couple of newly-designed bombs which were built to destroy anything within a 20 foot radius at key points in the offices, computer rooms and this room with a whole bunch of file cabinets that were set to explode in about 8 minutes. And when I meant a couple I meant about 20 of 'em.

We were now flying down a wide, spacious hallway, our bodies parallel to the ground which was about 4 feet below us.

This Itex building was much more hi-tech with metal, card-swiping doors, motion detector cameras and those laser detectors which we had to zigzag through. And yeah, we got to get past all of them.

7 minutes.

The flock suddenly stopped and landed lightly on their feet at the end of the hall, greeted by an intersection. Damn.

"Which way do we go, Max?" Gazzy asked, his head whipping back and forth to examine the halls.

Well, I guess I figured out the one thing we couldn't surpass: the identical-looking hallways that looked like they never ended.

"Let's go this way!" Nudge said after contemplating, opening her wings again and flying down the left hallway.

Everyone started to follow her, flying faster to get the heck out of here as a huge part of the building was set to fall apart in… 5 minutes.

It was just too bad I heard it a split-second before Nudge sped off….

Extremely soft but swift foot steps…

…Coming from the left hallway.

I cursed under my breath before flying down the left hall to catch up to them before all hell broke loose.

These halls were tremendously long. I'm sure it went on for meters or something as I breathed heavily while zooming through it, the curved tunnel walls shadowed with the hazy blue light overhead. Did I stop to think about the foot steps coming for so long to not be able to catch up to the flock?

Then, I finally saw the flock up ahead and I poured on the warp-speed. I flew around them, barely grazing Iggy's wings as I flew sideways, coming to hover in front of them.

They didn't see me coming so Nudge, who was ahead of everyone else, bumped into me hard and _Oof_-ed at contact.

"Max, get out of th--"

"Turn back! Turn back!" I urged them, pushing Nudge back the way we went.

"Max, what's wro--" Angel began but I was already speeding the way we came, pushing the flock along. They started following orders, though I knew they didn't know why, and when we reached the same intersection we encountered just 3 minutes ago, I forced them to go straight, the opposite way of where they were headed.

They keep trying to ask me stuff but I just spoke in incomplete sentences, like Fang on a normal day.

I was having an adrenaline rush, the familiar feeling coursing through me as the seconds ticked by…

"Max, te--"

"Faster! Hurry!" I screamed.

_19…_

_18…_

_17…_

"Max, you're scaring us!"

"Just, _GO!_"

_14…_

_13…_

_12…_

"MAX!" Iggy yelled as we continued surged forward.

_10…_

_9…_

_8…_

"Keep goi--"

"Max, WALL!"

"WHAT?"

_4…_

_3…_

_2…_

"SHIT!"

Then we all crashed into a glass window 30 stories high as pain exploded all over our bodies, paralyzing us.

I felt like a truck load of thumbtacks and nails were unloaded on top of me and a stampede of hormonal, boy-crazy, die hard fan girls just paraded on top of me to get to haven't-reached-puberty-yet Justin Beaver or whatshisface.

What a weird analogy. And Nudge might've been one of them so forget I ever said that.

Anyway, the pain was so strong it kept me from moving for at least 5 minutes, my blurry, clouded eyes blinking and I faintly remember watching the building burst into flames and combust above. I faintly remember thinking that the orange, black and red puffs of smoke were so beautiful I could lie here and watch it till it faded. I really couldn't think of anything else but that…

"Max…"

Huh? Who called me? I tried to respond…but I couldn't.

"Report guys!" I heard Fang call from farther away.

Fang. The flock.

I sat up fast, ignoring more pain that flowed through me.

"Is everyone alright?" I asked aloud, but my voice sounded raspy. I coughed a bit.

I saw Angel and Nudge helping Gazzy up, who had scratches on his face, from the glass covered ground. Angel was all bruised up and sooty and Nudge had a huge bruise on the left side of her face. Fang was dusting his clothes, his face scrunched up in pain and I noticed his arm was bleeding. Iggy was crouching right beside me, concern on his face along with cuts and scraps.

"We're fine. Max, your leg is bleeding, can you get up?" Iggy asked.

I answered by bending my right knee first when this warm jolt made its way there. I looked over at it and true enough, the denim in that area was soaked in dark red. I bent my other leg, planted my hands firmly on the ground and slowly got into a standing position. My palms felt prickly afterwards with tiny shards of glass.

"No one hurt to bad?" I asked Fang as he was tending to the younger kids.

He looked over at me and nodded. I sighed in relief.

"Let's go home." I said, about to take a running start when Fang called my name and I turned around.

A little ways over to the side of the building were 3 bodies wearing black security suits with guns slung on their backs, complete with combat boots. They were crumpled and twisted in different angles grotesquely and I was relieved and sorry at the same time.

"Max, I'm sorry I didn't hear the--" Iggy started but I shook my head.

"'S okay, don't worry about it. Look, let's just get home." I said, my voice still sounding rough. I tried not to look back at the bodies just lying there.

"But Max, how did you--"

"I don't know! Okay, Ig? I just wanna go home…" I said, unfurling my now-messed-up wings and taking off.

"Max, you're raining blood on Pennsylvania." Angel told me from behind and when I looked down, a thin trail of deep crimson twisted around my calf and shin, dripping down the toe of my sneaker. I tied the cloth around my knee tighter and more blood oozed through the cloth and down my leg. Oh forget it.

"Max, I'm hungry." Nudge whined and rubbed her stomach. Weren't we all.

"We're almost home Nudge. Iggy'll make you something when we get there." I smiled at her and looked over at Iggy.

He rolled his eyes and sighed. We were quiet for a while when he suddenly said, "Speaking of food, we're running out of, you know, supplies. Like meat and eggs and flour, not to mention baking soda…" His voice trailed off as he ticked them off on his fingers.

"Alright, alright. We'll go to the supermarket tomorrow, 'kay?" I said, rubbing my temples.

"Great!" Iggy smiled.

"Can we come! Can we come!" Gazzy and Angel chorused at the same time and I sighed, extremely tired.

"Sure. Let's go tomorrow morning…" I tried to sound enthusiastic, I did, but I was beyond bushed. I just wanted to sleep.

* * *

**Totally not related or anything but my friends and I always imagined Jeb to look like Peter Facinelli. Not Dr. Carlisle Cullen, Peter Facinelli.**

**I don't meant to clash Twilight with MR. I would never. But in real life, the dude who plays Carlisle is tanned and has dark brown hair. And has this certain smirk. He just fits the way I always thought of Jeb.**

**Also, I always imagined Magnolia, Ella's dog, to be like a basset hound or something. Not a pug… Haha.**

**So, review and tell your friends! :D**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	8. Surprise, Surprise!

**Sorry it's been so long! :(**

**Replies to the people:**

**Wolve Whisper: WOW. Thank you for all the alerts and stuff! You made me very happy beyond words. :)**

**SharpestSatire: Nawp! It's alright! Haha. And thank you for continuing to read this story! ;)**

**nikayla: Oh cool! I can sorta see that too. :P**

**sportychic: Hey! I'm glad you think that. They will know, in time. ;) And thanks! :D**

**Anyway, I'm just saying I'm really flattered that you're all putting my story on alert and stuff but I'd also like it if you guys reviewed because I'd love to hear what you think and reviews make me happy! :D Maybe I should make a minimum quota of reviews before posting the next chapter instead of posting a chapter every week…**

**Back to the story! Enjoy!**

* * *

I felt a tap on my shoulder and swiveled around to look into Angel's bright blue eyes. "Could Tyler and I go get some chocolate? We won't get a lot, we promise." She said, using her extra cute voice. Yeah, I knew all her tricks but that doesn't mean I don't fall for them.

"Um. Okay sweetie, just don't get lost or anything and come back once your done, alright?" I said, smiling and patting her head. She nodded eagerly and she and Gazzy raced off down the aisle.

I leaned on the cart, my knee aching and my legs tired from pushing around the cart, following the Igster around the supermarket. We were just about done, our cart full and heavy and we were on our last stop, the meat section because Iggy told me once before that you have to get the meats last 'cause it's all wet and you might moisten the other stuff or something like that.

I was just glancing around and between the aisles and amidst the running and screaming kids and mothers who couldn't decide which loaf of bread would be better, I notice one of the meat sales lady looking at me thoughtfully with a small smile on her lips. I immediately went on alert mode and narrowed my eyes at her, wanting to know what her deal was.

Yes, I turned to Suspicious Max because a sales lady was smiling at me. I know. My life is sad. But with us, anything was possible.

She was wearing the supermarket's uniform, an ugly frilly off-white blouse with the matching blinding cheap tight bright red skirt.

I was kidding when I said it matched.

"Hi Miss! What would you like to get?" She approached me (I was only a few paces away) and used her perky, ready-to-serve-you voice, smiling creepily at me.

"Oh no," trying tell her subtly that I wanted her to go away by turning towards Iggy. "I'm with him" I nodded my head in his direction.

"I see…" She said, smiling even bigger if it were possible.

She still stuck around.

A few seconds later, Gazzy and Angel ran back to where I was, holding hands full of snicker bars and toblerones and kitkat packs. We promise we won't get a lot my ass…

Angel giggled beside me and kissed me on the cheek when she climbed on the cart.

"Aww! What adorable little kids! How old are they?" Ms. Smilesalot asked, bending down to take a good look at them. Gazzy was holding my hand, giving her a WTF expression which she probably registered as "Who be you?" in a cutesy baby way.

What was wrong with this lady.

"Uhh… 7 and 9 years old." I answered, being nice incase she was mental or something. Angel giggled again.

"Wow! 7 and 9?! They're so big already!" Like she's ever even met them. Or _seen_ them before for that matter.

"They sure are…" I said, nodding and smiling sarcastically. Angel started laughing now, trying to control it by covering her mouth.

"So what're their names?" She asked. She looked like she wanted to pinch Angel's cheek or something but she was getting nowhere near my baby.

I was also getting suspicious that she was asking so many questions but I guess she was just really curious or just really like that. Just her ordinary insane self.

"Um. This here's Isabella and this here's Tyler." I said, putting a hand on their shoulders and looking at her levelly.

"Such cutie pies…" She murmured and smiled again. I think we should get away from her now.

"Riiiight." I said awkwardly.

"But," she suddenly added, "I hope you don't mind me asking… aren't you a bit too young?" She looked at me, concerned. Concern and some expression that I don't quite understand.

"Huh?" I raised an eyebrow. Angel looked at me, still covering her mouth from all that laughter. She looked like she was about to explode.

"You know, you look too young to be a mother." She said nicely.

OH SHE DID _NOT_ JUST SAY THAT.

I'm sure she meant it nicely but her words shocked me and made me freeze.

I gaped at her, opening and closing my mouth like a fish while she looked at me, puzzled now. After a few seconds, I found that I could speak.

"Hold up. You thought _I_ was their _mother?!_" I didn't mean to make my voice so loud but I was…I was just too _stunned_. "I-I-I'M ONLY 15! Are you on _crack_?!" I stared at her uncomprehendingly.

"B-b-but I thought they…" She looked back and forth between Angel (who was laughing her butt off like crazy now), Gazzy (who was too taken aback for words) and mem (who was caught in between glaring at her, embarrassing her or just staring at her), her eyes bugging out. She was turning completely red.

"They're my _siblings_! Oh," I breathed, looking to the ceiling. I laughed harshly. "my God. I don't look _that_ old, do I?!"

"I'm sorry, I just--" She looked like she wanted to cry. I had that effect on people.

"—wanted to make me feel _bad_? Made me feel like a shriveled up prune of a grandma?! Oh jeez!" I exclaimed, flailing my arms like crazy. Wow, just wow.

I took a deep breath.

"I'm really sorry, Mi--" I held up my hand at her.

So that was why Angel was choking with laughter. She _knew_.

I looked down at what I was wearing – worn out skinny jeans, a plain red t-shirt that I only realize was too small for me once we were in the car and my chucks – then looked towards Gazzy and Angel.

Do mothers even dress like this? And do I even look like Gazzy and Angel?

Well I suppose, since we were pretending to be siblings at school and no one's found us out yet.

But if I was their mom, then who was their…

OH FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY.

I sort of laughed in this breathless way and looked towards Iggy.

He was staring at us, eyebrows raised while he was handling the meats in plastics into his arms.

I motioned for him to come and he said something to the meat person, smiled and went over.

"James, let's go." I said, turning the cart around and probably saving Ms. Smilesalot from a lot of lashing on my part. I could've probably made her hate me if we stayed.

He looked confused as he followed me and before we were out of earshot, Angel looked back at her with a smile and said oh so innocently, "James is only 15 and he's her best friend, not her husband. They're much too young to be making kids yet."

You should have seen the look on Iggy's face.

Priceless.

* * *

"Ella _please_! Quit laughing already!" I whined. I really think I shouldn't have told them.

We were all gathered in the game room on the second floor and we had just told everyone what happened, including Iggy 'cause I was still too stunned to tell him what happened going home.

Ella was _still_ laughing, crying. Total was trying to calm down. Nudge was 100 percent calm already and was now just making witty remarks and Fang was just looking at me, amused.

"I'm…sorry!...that's just… so hilarious!" Ella said between laughs.

"Uh, no. Not really." I said crossing my arms over my chest. I brought up my feet on the couch and sighed.

Iggy walked over to me and plopped down next me right on the couch. He put an arm around my shoulders, stared in the direction of my eyes and smiled at me like an idiot.

"Our kids got your hair but they got my eyes, baby." He said, sounding way too sleazy for my liking.

I glared at him and pushed his face away with the palm of my hand. Everyone laughed again.

"Say that again Iggy and Fang would probably kill you in your sleep." Nudge said, still giggling.

"Why wait until he's sleeping?" Fang said in that sexy voice of his. Of course he was joking but if you didn't know him, you'd probably sleep with one eye open. Maybe.

We talked about the 'incident' for a long while, much to my dismay, and I found that I was very tired when I yawned and had to blink a few times to keep my eyes open.

"Okay, okay. Whatever. I'm turning in. 'Night." I said, standing up.

We stacked fists and tapped them twice before I left the room. I lazily, practically dragged myself to my room and I only realized that I was being followed when someone whispered my name. I spun around quickly and rammed into Fang's chest.

"Ow."

"Sorry." He said, half-smiling. We were standing directly on front of each other and I was holding his arm for support because I was so sleepy. He steadied me first with one hand, then, using the other, he tucked my hair behind my ear and his hand lingered there, touching my cheek.

"I just wanted to be the first to greet you."

"Whaaa…?" Was my only response because my eyes were starting to droop. How romantic of me.

"Happy Birthday, Max." He said quietly and kissed the top of my head.

I nodded, hugged him for a moment and walked back to my room groggily.

I have no idea what he just said to me.

* * *

"Max, Max, Max!" I faintly heard Nudge's panicked voice in my slumber.

"Go away Nudge…" I groaned. Or at least that's what I meant to say but I think it came out differently.

"MAX! You have to get up! NOW!"

"If you don't leave me alone in 5 seconds you will be face down on the ground with your hair tied to your arms _and_ legs. Now go." I pull the covers over higher. Jeez. It was way too early for drama.

"MAX! The _kitchen's on fire_! Hurry!"

Okay, now _that_ woke me up.

My eyes instantly widened and in less than 2 seconds I threw off the covers and was running alongside Nudge towards the kitchen.

_FIRE_! How the hell did anyone catch the kitchen on _fire_! Iggy and my mom were the only ones who cooked around here and they were perfectly capable! If the living room were on fire that would be _fine_, actually it would be the 3rd time this month but it was _never_ the kitchen. Go figure. Why would they need me _anyway_? They know how to put off a—

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAX!" everyone in the kitchen cheered.

I was rounding a corner to reach the kitchen and I slipped on the shiny marble floor, landing on my butt with a thud.

It was very overwhelming.

I wasn't even the sure if it was the marble's fault that made me fall (fall is a too graceful word for the situation. More like 'go splat' like in those cartoons) or if it was the flock's burst of enthusiasm and mirth. Or maybe it was both, but their booming voices were a big factor.

Everyone laughed and Nudge, who had ran ahead of me to reach the side of the island to join them, walked towards me and helped me up, still giggling.

"Jesus Christ guys, what the hell?" I said, rubbing it where it was sore.

"You didn't think we'd forget, did you?" Gazzy said, walking towards me to give me a hug. I hugged him back.

"Ya, and since it's my birthday, I would have thought you'd let me sleep in." I retorted. But truthfully, I had forgotten it was my birthday.

"Max! How could you forget? You've reached the big one six now!" Angel said happily and kissed me on the cheek.

"Please. Don't remind me." I said. Everyone gave me a hug, (well in Total's case, he licked me. Bleh.) including Fang who went last.

"Again, Happy Birthday." He said, hugging me and leaving his arm around my waist.

"_Again?_" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He just laughed.

It was actually already 12 in the afternoon (whoops) and our brunch consisted of delicious cake that I could've bathed in because I loved it so much (made by Iggy), chips and ice cream. Yum, diabetes buffet…

We jumped in the pool in our pajamas (actually Iggy pushed Gazzy and Nudge fell in) and swam a bit. Then afterwards we just bummed around in the living room binge-eating and playing games.

It was the happiest I've ever felt in a long time because the flock was together and we were having fun and eating well and just doing what we wanted to without having to feel scared about anything. It was amazing, this feeling. I never wanted it to end. I could've burst with joyfulness and I didn't actually care that that sounded really gay just then.

"The number you're thinking of is 7." Iggy said righteously.

"That's so cool! How'd you do it?" Ella asked, her eyes shining.

"No way. I was thinking 7 too!" Gazzy added.

Angel and I just laughed at their expressions. Iggy just showed them the math mind trick game thingy when you add and subtract numbers and still come up with the number 7. Always works.

"You gotta teach me that!" Nudge said before stuffing her mouth with Ruffles.

I shook my head and looked over at Fang, who I was leaning against with on the couch. He smiled. He always smiles for me now.

"Time for gifts!" Angel said, clapping her hands when the doorbell suddenly rang.

And I bet you know what's going to happen next.

* * *

It was already routine for us to look over at Angel whenever the doorbell rang what with her mind reading powers and all but when we did this time she just looked confused and shook her head.

Huh?

I shrugged and got up. The rest of the flock followed suite.

"Must be a delivery or somethi--" I started and was cut short when I saw who it was.

Best Birthday ever, maybe even one of the best days of my life, was now ruined.

I sighed heavily, showing my annoyance on purpose, and stepped on front of the door to prevent him from trying to come in.

"What the hell are _you_ doing here?" I said coldly, using the voice I reserved for him and up downed him looking disgusted. I had such good manners.

"Can't I greet my own daughter on her birthday?" Jeb said, unfazed by my greeting. He brushed past me to enter the house and my body involuntarily growled in response.

I slammed the door as he was entering and his precious lab gown got stuck in between the crack. He twisted around and started tugging while I walked past him oh so innocently with my head held high. The flock burst out laughing. Max: 1 Jeb: 0.

But the moment died down quickly and the flock's expressions immediately changed to one of annoyance, anger, disbelief, resentment and so on. Everyone except Ella.

"Hi Jeb!" She greeted.

Once he got to pull his coat free he waved at her.

To makes things clear, I already knew Jeb was 'good' it was just hard to get used to and none of us still trusted him. He brought back good and bad memories and he was just so bi-polar we don't have the patience to keep track anymore. We're fed up with his games. His betrayal also added to the flock's bitterness aside from the whole School with cages things so that's something we won't just take lightly.

"We'll then you've probably got the wrong house." I said after I stood next to Fang.

I knew that would sting but he acted like he didn't hear that. "Here." He said, handing me a box with a ribbon tied on.

I raised an eyebrow. "If this thing explodes on me and I die, I'm gonna make sure I'll be the death of you too." I said still using the voice and started to untie the knot.

When I tore off the wrapping I stared at the picture of the cell phone, slightly tilted on the cover of the box.

"A cell phone? Really Jeb, you already know I have one." I said with a WTF expression.

He just shrugged. "Just thought it might come in handy to you one day."

"Oh it's handy alright." I said to him with a sly smile then turned towards Iggy and Gazzy, "You boys need some parts for your experiments?" I said happily.

"Oh yeah!" Gazzy shouted and he and Iggy high-fived then fist-bumped. Some of us laughed.

"There. I'm already using your gift." I said, turning back to him. "Thank you Jeb. You can go now." I plastered on a fake smile.

"Max, honey, could you please not act like that right now, especially since it's your birthday--"

"Don't 'Max, honey' me, _Jeb_." I spat. "You and I both know I've already been 16 for the past 4 months so just cut the crap and go already." I said steely.

He froze and stared at me with different emotions swirling in his eyes. Horror, curiosity, panic and a lot more adjectives along those lines.

No one moved. No one spoke. Everyone was smart not to interject me, especially when I was like this.

I broke the silence after a few seconds.

"But let's play this your way, since this _is_ all a game, right?" I started waving at him. "Bye _dad_. I'll tell mom you passed by! Thanks for the gift! I really appreciate it."

He nodded once and exited quietly, keeping his eyes on me until the moment he shut the door.

I exhaled in relief. "Finally…" Then I turned towards the flock. "I'm sorry guys." I said with a sad smile. This night was ruined.

They all nodded and when I started walking back to the living room with the rest of them, Fang grabbed me by my wrist, making me spin and look at him. My eyes questioned his.

"Let's go out Max. Just you and me." He said like it was no big deal but I could see in his eyes, his deep, dark, beautiful eyes that he had something planned.

"Right now?" I asked. He nodded, his face still not giving away anything.

"Where?"

"Does it matter?" He raised an eyebrow.

I shook my head and started to smile. The rest of the flock started to pile into the living room again acting like they didn't know a thing but I knew they were in on this.

Holding my hand now, Fang and I passed the sliding doors that lead to the garden. We took off hand and hand and I followed him wherever he was taking me. I'd always follow wherever he'd go.

* * *

**Yeah. Don't hate me for the grocery thing. The idea just came to me and I thought it was funny even though it might now make sense. But they **_**are**_** mature-looking for their age and was it book 1 that Max said she could pass for an adult? Anyway, I understand it's OOC and crazy, but hey, this story is crazy!**

**Also, I need your help here: Give me a name that would suite Max. (instead of the name Max of course) Please be serious, ideas are forming in my head. :P**

**Anyway, please review! :( Like I said, I'm flattered with the story alerts and stuff but I'd also like to hear what you think :D And please spread the love a.k.a. my story! :P**

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany:.**


	9. A Liar Telling the Truth about Lying

**ARRGH! I just got a haircut and my bangs keep getting in my eyes! Annoying to type… :P Anyways, replies to the reviews first:**

**SharpestSatire: Thank you! :) I had lots of fun writing it :P And you're right about one thing… **

**kselzer: YES. Haha! Though I already know what's going to happen in the next book and the flock and Fang are going to see each other again. ;) The thing you **_**should**_** be worried about is Max and Dylan's relationship… (bum bum buuum)**

**And I think so too, but we'll see.**

**mythicalcreatures428: Thanks so much :D**

**purplewing: I'm glad you do ;)**

**Myrrh: Really? :O That's so cool!**

**I decided to post earlier than I planned because I just felt like it. :P And I didn't post the last one in a long while so…**

**Now for the story! God, I hope I didn't stuff it. :-S Enjoy! **

* * *

I swear I couldn't wipe the goofy smile off my face. It was like it was permanently there.

This was Fang's gift, I realized. It was like our very first date back in Hawaii. (I still can't believe our first date was in _Hawaii_) We were holding hands, swaying them while walking in the park. I knew it was late and dark now, but that didn't matter. I could be in Antarctica (and we _were_ there. God, I gotta stop making past location references) for all I cared, freezing my butt off getting frostbite but as long as I was with Fang, I would be content. Happy beyond words, even.

Our breath came out in puffs on front of our faces while we strolled. We forgot to get jackets before we left (again ,whoops) but we were used to drastic temperature changes and the such. He'd twirl me as we walked, spinning me so that I was directly in front of him with his arm around me. We'd walk, sort of skipping while fooling around. A lot of playful pushing and smiling. And laughing. I was afraid at first that I'd been dreaming.

We flew around at first, playing and racing in the sky. No boundaries. Occasionally talking but we were mostly quiet because there was no need for that. Soon, when we noticed it was getting pretty late we ate at McDonald's for dinner and stayed a while, talking. Afterwards, we went for a walk around the park, which is what we're doing now.

You're probably thinking, "McDonald's? WTH?" but the thing is, it was perfect.

I wouldn't have had it any other way. I didn't need to eat dinner somewhere schmancy tonight for it to be romantic because in truth anything I did with Fang was already romantic. Something as simple as McDonald's is already special to me. We're not 'live-in-the-lap-of-luxury' type of people and something like Fang taking me out on a night flight with him was already okay for us and it already impresses me. And he knew it.

"What are you thinking?" Fang asked me, looking into my eyes. We had stopped walking.

"I was thinking of how perfect tonight was." I told him honestly, smiling up at him. "Thank you, Fang. For tonight." I held his other hand now.

He pulled me closer, and kissed my forehead. "Anytime, Max."

When he pulled back, we were still standing close. Silence.

It was a magical silence. I couldn't look away from his depthless eyes full of so much emotions that I bet only I could see.

After a while (I don't know how long a while), he breathed on my face, "Let's go back."

I could only nod.

"What a night…" I whispered as I plopped on Fang's bed at around 1 in the morning. We dragged out flight back home, trying to make the time together longer, but of course all good things had to come to an end.

We passed through Fang's balcony doors because I remembered mine were locked. Taking a breather, I lied down on Fang's bed with my knees still bent at the edge. His scent on his sheets swam around me, distracting me for a moment. Finally, when my thoughts were all straight, I sat back up to see where Fang went.

He was leaning on the wall beside the balcony doors looking at me, an amused smile on his face. I raised an eyebrow at him but he just shook his head.

"Well…good night, Fang." I said, sort of awkwardly.

I didn't stand up just yet.

He walked forward, standing directly in front of me. At first I didn't understand what he was doing. Then suddenly, he placed both hands on either side of the bed, trapping me.

"Good night, Max." He said softly and kissed me on the lips.

His lips fit perfectly with mine. One of the many reasons why we were meant to be. His warm lips lingered longer than his usual goodnight kisses. I kind of wished it turned into something more.

When he pulled away, my lips were still warm, my eyes closed.

I really didn't want this night to end.

"Fang?" I called, opening my eyes.

He was looking down at me, curious.

Now I was embarrassed, but I gave it a shot anyway. What have I got to lose? I can't believe these words are actually going to escape my lips…

"Fang…could I…stay with you tonight?" I asked sheepishly. I bet my skin was a very attractive shade of red. Okay, this wasn't like me. I mean, we're talking about _me _here. Me who once beat the crap out of about a dozen Erasers with 2 broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder and a twisted knee. Me who once convinced a whitecoat to back off and scat when he was about to collect Nudge for a 6th test within an hour using only my glare. And now I was asking Fang if I could stay the night with him in his room.

I'm such a sap I really feel sorry for myself.

I was looking down now, waiting for his answer. _What have I got to lose?_ Oh, I dunno. Maybe some of my dignity! Dammit! What was I thinking?! What the heck did I just do! I could already see it, him laughing at my face or smirking at me in that annoying way of his even if he looked really good doing it. Or I could imagine him saying something like, "You're kidding me right?" or maybe even, "Max, I think the Voice has gotten to you."

Greeeeeaaaaat. Just freakin' great. I should have kept my big mouth shut. What was I thin--

His hand was suddenly holding mine, gently stroking the back of my hand.

I looked up at him and I saw kindness and warmth on his face. Emotions that only he would let me see.

"Sure, Max. If that's what you want." He smiled at me. And I couldn't help but smile back.

All my thoughts about his possible rejection just disappeared from my mind as he walked across the room to get to the other side of the bed.

We made ourselves comfortable under the covers and when I turned around to say good night once more, his face was only inches from mine.

I gasped because of the proximity as his hand went up to stroke my cheek softly. He stared into my eyes and mouthed once more, "Good night, Max." before turning his back on me.

I turned back too. I was sort of in a trance but was giddy deep inside. And when I thought things couldn't get any better, his hand found mine under the covers and we kept it that way until I fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, I found myself smiling when I woke up. We slept apart, unlike the last time, but surprisingly our hands were still intertwined and it didn't feel uncomfortable at all.

I eventually had to leave to prepare for school and I thought again of how school ruined all the good moments.

Some more of my happiness quickly disappeared when I went downstairs for breakfast and saw my mom hauling a giant duffel bag across the kitchen.

"Here, let me help." I said and picked up the bag effortlessly, carrying it on my shoulder. She laughed breathlessly and thanked me.

Mom was going to some vet convention/meeting down south for a week because ever since she put up her own clinic here in Connecticut, she's been getting pretty famous for her work. Go mom!

"What times your flight?" I asked sadly, twirling a blueberry muffin in my long fingers absent-mindedly.

"I'll be staying at a friend's house for a while and we'll be riding the plane together. My flight's after lunch, at around 1."

"Ahh…" I said, just trying to find reasons to make conversation.

"Nooo! My life would be empty, insignificant, meaningless without you, Dr. M!" Gazzy whined.

"You mean your life would be empty without Dr. M's _cookies_, Gazzy." Nudge said pointedly before she thrust her arm out dramatically towards the counter and a knife literally _flew _to her palm for her to cut her sandwiches. We were all used to this by now.

He walked over to Nudge, 'hummph-ed in front of her face and let one rip once he turned around and walked away.

"EWWW! GAZZY! You are so dead to _me_!" Nudge cried, running after him with the said knife in her hands. No worries. We're careful.

Most of the time.

We all cracked up while holding our noses, pushing one another to get to the garage.

Mom wouldn't be able to drop us off at school today because she promised to have breakfast with her friend and we wouldn't have a car going back home if she dropped us off so we said our goodbyes now.

All her stuff were in the trunk and she was just about ready to go. She turned to us.

She hugged all of the younger kids. Angel, Gazzy ad Nudge were pretty much her children too now. Then she awkwardly patted Iggy and Fang on the back, smiling at them. They smiled back. Lastly, she hugged me and Ella, squeezing me in a sandwich like that first time I had to leave, before I knew she was my mom.

"Max, Ella, take care of everything while I'm gone. I'll miss you." She said, directly into my right ear.

"Mom, you sound so dramatic. You've been watching _way_ too many soap operas." I said to lighten the mood. Some of the flock laughed.

"Okay now, everyone do well in school and continue doing your chores. Angel, don't excessively use your powers and don't forget to practice the violin. Gazzy, no bombs. And stay away from the artichokes and beans. _Please_. Nudge, please let Max wear whatever she wants,"

I chuckled at that and Nudge pouted.

"Iggy, don't let the flock starve. Fang, keep an eye out for Max." Fang looked at me and winked. "Ella, don't forget to study for that Spanish test and remember your school duties. And Max, just be yourself." She smiled at the last part and started to get into the car.

We waved goodbye until her car was out of sight, then we all piled into the van we always rode and I drove everyone to school.

* * *

It was finally, _finally_, the 2nd to the last period of the day: Finite Math.

We took our seats as Ms. Reeves entered the classroom, clutching stacks of paper and a notebook. She was the very messy, unorganized type of teacher.

She spun around to get her notebook, then turned back again to pick up chalk as to write something then decided to turn back again. She's entertaining, but when she starts to lecture it was like a lullaby to me.

"Umm, class? Did I assign homework?"

Most of the class droned no. I didn't care enough to say anything.

"Uhh, yes she did…?" Megan, some girl who sat 4 seats away from me, raised her voice to contradict. Oooh, bad move.

Everyone shot her death glares.

After "everyone" passed their homework, Ms. Reeves began the lecture and I was instantly out like a light.

I could still faintly hear the lecture as I snoozed. My right elbow was propped on the desk and my head was leaning on my right palm, my eyes fighting to stay open.

"Cam…Cam…"

My elbow was slowly sliding across the desk.

"Cam…wake up…"

"Mmhmm…" I mumbled, barely conscious when my elbow reached the edge of my desk.

My arm fell and my face slammed on my desk as it went out of balance.

My head shot up, my face on fire.

SWEET JESUS! I almost cursed out loud.

I turned to the voice that whispered my name while rubbing my nose. I was about to ask Mitzi what her problem was when Ms. Reeves called my attention.

"Ms. Ride?"

I looked up at her.

"You," she pointedly looked at me, "and your brother," she looked over at Fang, "need to go down to the principal's office immediately. The both of you are excused from class." And her face was serious.

_Aw crap._

I tapped Iggy's hand twice before I got up. He looked up at me questioningly.

People oooh-ed as Fang and I got up from our seats, taking our bags with us and walked to the door.

If you asked me, we looked haughty and badass as we stood side by side with our arms crossed next to Ms. Reeves as she confirmed some of the news with the messenger.

"What did you _do_?" I whispered to Fang.

"I was bout to ask you the same thing." He whispered back, so quiet that only we could hear.

Steph Adams (more on her later), who sat near the front of the class, smirked at me when we made eye contact and I did my signature death glare back to her, no pity whatsoever. She froze and cowered into her chair, looking away. Oh yeah, I'm good.

"You may go now." Ms. Reeves turned back to us and looked questioningly at Steph before Fang and I made our exit.

* * *

It turns out that we weren't the ones in trouble at all. Once we got to the principal's office, our headmaster gave us slips and instructed us to head to Jenier middle school immediately.

I had an idea of what was going on but our headmaster didn't give us any details because 'it wasn't his concern.'

Before we exited his office I saw a plaque on the wall with Stryder-Hills elementary school, Jenier middle school and Greymoore high school's quote of arms on it. Oh, so they were all sister schools. Huh.

I already felt a headache coming along as we drove to Jenier, which was just a couple of minutes away, and headed to the principal's office. I was hoping my assumptions were wrong…

After we gave our names to the secretary, she pointed us to a door and I knocked twice.

"Come in." A deep man's voice answered.

We entered.

And I was disappointed to see the principal, whose name on a stand read 'Principal Thomas Carter', looking solemnly at Gazzy, who was sitting on the chair on front of his desk, playing with his thumbs and looking down.

And here we go.

"Mr. and Ms. Ride, or may I call you Nicholas and Cameron? I'm sorry to disrupt you from your classes but it seems your little brother has broken the rules of this school yet again. I'm sure you know that this isn't the first time and that you know what we're talking about."

We both nodded.

"Please, sit down." He indicated to the couch a few feet in front of his desk. "I'm sorry I had to call the both of you. I…wasn't sure who was responsible while your mother was away. You," he looked at Fang, "are the eldest in the family, correct? But your mother appointed you," He looked me in the eye, "responsible for your family while she's gone. So I decided just to call the both of you here." He smiled, but it ended up looking cold and evil. Okay, this dude gave me the creeps.

Gazzy sighed audibly and mumbled something under his breath. Principal Carter glared at his head.

I stared at Gazzy, or at least his hair, trying to determine if he really did something wrong. I wouldn't be surprised if he did break the rules because it would be the 2nd time this month. Gazzy was also a really good liar, as well as the rest of the flock, because we had to learn how to deceive people. Uh, look at the show we're putting up now.

But as I stared at him, I instantly knew he was innocent. Like something just clicked in my head that he didn't do anything. Call me crazy (on second thought, don't.) but I felt…like I could feel dread and fear and _happiness_ even, radiating from him. But no guilt. And the voice in my head (no, not the Voice) was never wrong.

"Umm…thank you, Principal Carter, for calling us over. I don't know what happened now but I know that my brother is innocent." I defended in a civil way. If you wanted to be treated like an adult you had to act like an adult.

"Well, of course you would defend Tyler over here. He's your brother. Do you even know what he did this time?"

I shook my head.

"He set off a stink bomb in the 4th grade boy's bathroom! A STINK BOMB! Do you know how hard that would be to clean up? And how long it would take before the smell went away?" He rose his voice and stood up from his seat.

Oh, so that's how it is…

His immature outburst caused my developing headache to worsen. Sheesh…

That would have been so classically Gazzy if I hadn't known he wasn't guilty. I mean, he was the _epitome_ of bad smells and his trademark creation were in fact, bombs. But I was sticking to my verdict.

I knew this was going to sound bad, but I couldn't just sit there and watch Gazzy being eaten alive by some uptight, crazy school principal. And even if I knew he were at fault, I would have defended him anyway. He was my brother; I wouldn't let this happen to him.

"Excuse me? But do you have proof it was Tyler? Did you catch him or see him set it off? I know he's…broken some rules in the past but he's stopped. You have to believe him." I argued back.

"And why should I believe him? I admit no teacher caught him but who else would do it?" He said though he sat back down in his seat and was talking levelly.

"You should believe him because he could be telling the truth. You can't deny him something like that." Fang interjected. I could tell he didn't know where I was going at but he still backed me up. I gave him a fast, small smile.

"And, with all due respect Principal Carter, you can't just blame a kid with no evidence whatsoever just because they've done a few wrongs in the past. And, he's _in_ the 4th grade. Why would he want to blow up the only boy's bathroom in the level." I added, my eyes boring into his.

He had to let Gazzy go. He didn't do anything wrong. It wasn't acceptable that he would just blame a kid because he was 'likely to do it'.

I stared at Principal Carter, hoping the message would get through.

His eyes widened and he cleared his throat. "Fine. I'll let Tyler go. It was wrong of me to blame him when there's a likely chance that he's innocent." Then he shook his head and cleared his throat. "But if I ever catch him, he's going to get it." He added.

"I understand Principal Carter, but I don't think that would happen." I responded, smiling at him sweetly.

He narrowed his eyes at me and signal for all of us to go. We all left without another word.

Once we were outside his office, I faced Gazzy and ruffled his hair.

"Let's go home. I'm thinking last period's almost over. Go find Nudge and Ella." I told him. '_I also need to take a nap_.' I mentally added. Gazzy looked stunned with my words but ran off anyway.

Fang then faced me.

"That was easier than I thought." He told me.

He intertwined his fingers with mine and we started walking down the empty hall.

"I know! I thought we'd be there for hours! And Principal Carter had quite an attitude. We should be lawyers." I laughed and leaned on his shoulder as we continued walking.

"So, what's Gazzy's punishment?" He asked, looking down at me through his peripheral.

We stopped walking and I looked up at him.

"Max, you and I both know Gazzy did that." He said.

"No. Gazzy didn't do it." I shot back. He raised his eyebrows at me.

"I don't know Fang, I just have this feeling. I know he's innocent." I said confidently.

"The Voice again?"

"No, it's not the Voice. Just this…feeling." I really couldn't explain what I thought. I was just sure.

"Max--" He started, sighing irritably.

"Fang, please just trust this feeling. Trust _me_. I can't explain it but I just know he's telling the truth and I don't want to argue with you." '_Don't add to my stupid, searing headache…'_ I thought. Then I added, "Let's just give him the benefit of the doubt."

He looked at me for a long time then just nodded and kissed my head.

I sighed in relief and we continued down the hall to reach the exit.

* * *

"So…that's it?" I asked once he finished telling me his side of the story. It was already night time and I decided to talk to him before he went to bed. He was all tucked in, bundled up in the blankets on his big bed with his pajama sleeves a little too big for his skinny arms.

"Yeah…" he said.

I sighed and smiled at him. "I'm so glad it wasn't you. I knew it wasn't you." I stroked his blond hair.

"Max…how did you know it wasn't me? Or were you just pretending like the last time? Because the situation was sketchy. And I really thought that you'd think it was me." He asked quietly, cautiously.

"No, I knew. It's called gut-feeling." I laughed lightly and kissed his forehead. I was reminded of the time when he was 4 and always wanted to sleep next to me because of the nightmares. We had just escaped the School then. "Good night Gazzy." I started walking towards the door.

"Max," he called after me. I turned back to face him. "Thank you…defending me." He hesitated. I mean we didn't usually talk like this. Our normal conversations usually involved teasing, sarcasm, death threats and the such.

"Anytime Gazzy," I replied, "Anytime…" my voice growing more quiet as I closed the door behind me.

According to Gazzy, he was just being a good friend. I could tell he wasn't telling me everything but basically one of his friends, Matthew, bought those cheap stink bombs in those prank stores and wanted to test it out in the bathroom. Long story, short: Gazzy knew the consequences and took the blame when the bomb went wrong.

"I read the ingredients on the plastic. Nothing harmless at all. It wasn't even fun." Gazzy pouted. "It just _really_ stunk. But it was okay, I guess. Matt's mom's a strict, uptight sour creepy witch." He rolled his eyes at that. "If he got in trouble, I don't think he would have seen the light of day."

I wouldn't put it past him to do something like that. Gazzy was a really sweet kid once you get to know him. He was my trouper, my little brother.

* * *

**And first part was fax for you. ;) **

**I really found it sweet because the simplest things already made them happy. :)**

**And I'm sorry if I disappointed anyone but I won't be writing steamy make-out sessions or anything along those lines because even if I'm technically 'old' I still feel uncomfortable writing something private like that. (I sound as if they really exist) And Max and Fang have been dating for almost a year now, they won't be hungry for stuff like that. **

**If I were writing a story about them being separated then finding each other it would make sense because they would have been apart for a long time. **

**And if you think about it, when you're dating someone, you're not always making out with them left and right. You're together because you get along and could take about things, not because of the lust you feel.**

**I also wanted to show you guys a different side of Gazzy because the kid rarely gets the spotlight and he's such a sweetie. :P**

**Pay attention to detail dahlings… ;)**

**Læs og anmeldelse behage! (That's read and review please in Danish :)**

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	10. Teenage Girl Fun

**Come on guys! XP 13 people put me on Story Alert and 10 put me on their Favorite Story list so I'm dying for reviews! :( (I know that's not really a lot but I'm still very super duper thankful to the readers! I mean, I've only started a few months ago.) I want to know if I made any errors, grammar mistakes or if I sounded off or ranted too long about insignificant details! I can even take criticism. I want to become a better author/writer so get your other friends here on fanfiction to read my story please! :D I will be extremely happy if I get a lot. :) I also take suggestions (but please be serious) so hit me with you best shot. ;) **

**DancingSurferSoccerplayer: Thank you soo much! XD But you're going to have to keep reading to find out! ;)**

**OH! And ZOMG thank you so much hon, for putting me on all you Favorites and alerts! You seriously made me so happy that day! (And I remembered it was on April 10 :D) I was packing my stuff (moving houses) and I was really busy but I never forgot you and I never even got to thank you! You're awesome in my book. ;)**

**SharpestSatire: Thank you so much again! Oh, and I love your story so when/if you read this I want you to UPDATE. O_o And you're welcome! I won't ever. I love the flock too much :) If it were all Maxfangdramallama I'd get bored and annoyed with myself. Haha!**

**kirena45: HELL YES! I found that part hilarious :P And I totally agree with you; Gazzy's too awesome to be forgotten. ;) Thank you for reading my story! :D**

Tuesday the next day, I was greeted by a very ecstatic, very elated Lizette Greene. She was so jumpy her preppy shiny black hair was swishing left and right and her blue eyes were shining.

"Okay, what orphanage/charity/organization did you like donate to this time?" Mitzi asked without looking up from her magazine as Izzy took her seat, still jittery.

"MITZI! Oh my gosh! Mitzi, CAM! I'm so happy!" She burst.

"I can start guessing if you want me to. There's umm--"

"No! None of that! Lookie what I saw this morning in my locker!" She squealed and handed a piece of paper over to Mitzi. I read the note from right beside her.

_Dear Izzy,_

_I just wanted to let you to know that I think you're amazing and that I admire your everything. I always look forward to seeing you. _

_Love, _

_Your secret admirer_

We all stared at the note for a moment until Mitzi looked up, a look of annoyance on her face.

"God, this is like, _so_ grade school." Mitzi teased. I laughed.

"Whoa Iz. This is kinda creepy if you ask me." I told her. Or maybe it's just 'cause I'm the Queen of Paranoia. 'nuff said.

"But…it just sounds so sweet! You know? I'm really curious who it is!" She smiled and started looking around.

Mitzi put down her magazine and smacked her palms on the table. "Now you're talking! I thought you were just going to play the cheesy card on me the whole day." She said grinning.

I looked over at Iggy, Zach and Bris and saw that they were deep in their own conversation about God knows what.

I turned back to them. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Where have you been living? Under a rock?" Mitzi questioned.

"Sorta." She rolled her eyes.

"Okay, we're gonna try and figure out who sent this note." Izzy started.

"Then, if the guy's like hot or not, we'll decide what we'll do from there." Mitzi continued.

I have never, _ever_ played this game before.

They first analyzed the note. I watched them ponder.

"Well, he must be a classmate. He said, 'I always look forward to seeing you.' So he has to see you everyday." Mitzi said.

"Okay, so he's a classmate. There are 16 boys in our class--"

"What if it's not a guy…?" I asked 'cause I was _really_ just curious. Okay, that _so_ had a double meaning right there but I was also thinking what if some girls in our class wanted to pull a joke on Izzy for the fun of it? Izzy may not be part of the flock, but she was my friend and if someone was just doing this for 'fun' they were going to get it.

Mitzi and Iz ignored my question. They really like to live in their own world.

"It can't be these idiots." Mitzi jerked a thumb at the 3 who sat across from us, still not looking up from their convo.

"It can't be your brother, Cam." Mitzi continued narrowing down the subjects. Izzy sighed audibly.

"Yeah," I replied too swiftly, "he has a girlfriend back in Arizona." _Damn straight!_

They both looked at me for a moment then shook their heads. "More on that later."

They thought some more.

"Kevin's dating Lauren so he's out." Mitzi started. "Evan's dating Monica--"

"I thought he was dating Mia?" Izzy interrupted.

"That was like _so_ last month Izzy. He's dating Monica now."

"But Monica's best friends with Sofia, who's cousins with Mia! That's like totally awkward!" Izzy exploded with shock.

"I know, but not really. Only sorta. So anyway, Aaron's dating Ashley, or was it Abby?"

"No, last I heard it was Ashley."

"Yeah? Didn't they fight like, last week?"

"I dunno. I saw them go out together when--"

"GUYS! Slow down! What the _hell_ are you guys talking about?" I looked back and forth between them, eyes wide. This was their idea of a _game_? I don't know how the _hell_ they knew all this! It was unbelievable I was their age because I could _not_ relate. It was like they were speaking a different language. Heck! Another language would have been easier to understand!

"Sorry." Izzy apologized. Mitzi looked up for a moment then spoke up. "Back to the subject, who else isn't available?"

"Umm…Oh! Aly just started dating Will!" Izzy put in.

"Oh ew. Not a good couple…" Mitzi scrunched up her nose and ticked off 8 on her fingers.

"So we have Josh, Luke, David, Mason, Michael, Justin, Aiden and Jake left." Mitzi said without having to pause to think. I don't know how she did it.

"No, Aiden's out of the picture. He's Cam's." Izzy started giggling like a madman and I glared at her. But she wasn't looking at me.

"Oh riiight. He's only got eyes for youuu." Mitzi drawled and wiggled her eyebrows at me, smiling smugly.

"EW." Was all I could groan because no other words could describe how thoroughly disgusted I was. And I was the Word Queen.

Aiden was your typical popular teenage boy who, basically, has a 'crush' on me.

And I said it with quotation marks because I was way past 'crushes' by now. I mean, doesn't that only happen in middle school? (again, I observed this from movies) But he was insignificant to talk or think about; sure, he's a creep but he's was harmless.

"It can't be David. He's too much of a self-centered jerk to be crushing on anyone but himself." Mitzi said.

"Hear, hear." I said, laughing.

"Ooh! It can't be Justin." Mitzi said in her gossip girl voice, looking smug and righteous about herself. She leaned in close and I followed even though I didn't know what was happening. "I heard Justin likes – wait for it – _Emma_." She whispered dramatically and I didn't see what the big deal was.

"Shut up." Izzy gasped. But apparently _she_ did.

Okay, I think I'll just sit this one out (even though I was already sitting) as Mitzi and Iz chitchatted away about the rumors and whatnot.

I glanced at the boys who were laughing their heads off and I wouldn't be surprised if they started rolling on the floor except for the fact that the cafeteria floor was really gross. To distract myself, I wanted to take a look at the note again.

"Hey, can I take a look at it again…" I ask and Izzy distractedly shoved the note into my hands, obviously caught up with the juicy gossip.

I took one look at the note and it was like a punch in the gut. I was hoping to see if I could decipher the handwriting or get more clues from the note but the answer immediately came to me. I gasped and spoke without thinking.

"It's Mason. Mason Turner." I announced confidently. Turner. Wow. I didn't even know I knew his surname.

I looked over at Mitzi and Iz who stopped mid-gossip, looking at me funny.

"_Mason?_ Why do you say that?" Mitzi questioned suspiciously.

Oh, right. Mason… Why did I think Mason anyway…? Another gut-feeling perhaps? But I didn't even know these people…

"I-I don't know… Best guess?" I answered sheepishly.

Izzy's blue eyes, which were filled with hope at the thought of finally finding her Prince Charming, drooped and shone with disappointment in the next second at my statement.

Mitzi sighed loudly, scowling.

"Cam, you don't _guess_. That's not how you play the game. God…" She said non-too kindly. Okay, attitude alert right there.

"Look Mits, what if my guess was coincidently Izzy's admirer? Why don't you give it a shot?" I suggested with an edge in my voice. Though I seriously think it _is_ Mason even though I couldn't explain _why_.

Izzy started to smile. "Maybe we could do the stare test…" she added to my suggestion. I started smiling too though I didn't know what the heck they were talking about.

Then Mitzi started nodding. "Alright. We could go with that."

Izzy twisted her torso in the direction where Mason and his friends sat, staring directly at his form.

When Mitzi saw my confused look she chuckled lightly and explained. "You know…the stare test? It fits the situation 'cause like whoever gave the note gave it before lunch, right? So like obviously said secret admirer would like keep looking at Iz to see if she's like, read it or see what her reactions would be."

I was more distracted by the fact that she said 'like' 4 times.

When her words finally registered in my head I just nodded.

And at the same time that I nodded Izzy broke out into a fit of giggles and squeals. I didn't think that was humanly possible.

She turned back around to face us.

"OMG guys… He looked back! Mason looked back! Ohmaygosh! He saw me looking at him look back!" She ranted.

Mitzi grinned widely. "_Oh?_ Hmm… Mason Turner, huh? Not bad…" She nodded to herself. Then she faced me. "Good job, Cam. Looks like your best guess was correct."

I laughed.

As Izzy and Mits started to formulate plans on how to ask him out or flirt with him or whatever the heck they were gonna do next I started thinking to myself that today was epic. For me at least.

Because this was the first time in the short 15 years of my life that I won a 'teenage girl game' concerning secret admirers and stare tests which I'd just heard and learned a few minutes ago.

And it was just a few minutes ago that I got to play matchmaker for one of my close friends.

Huh. Who knew I had a normal, better yet _girly_ side hidden within me?

I sure as hell didn't.

That night I was dreaming incoherently about nothing in particular. It felt very nice to sleep now, especially with my…condition that a nap felt like heaven.

Suddenly, the light beyond my eyelids flared open brightly and something started jumping on my bed.

"Who the hell's got a death wish…" I grumbled.

"Max! Max! Max!" Ugh. I knew that voice anywhere: Nudge.

She was still bouncing on my bed when I opened my eyes a slit and looked at the clock on my side table.

11:37pm.

WHAT IN HEAVEN'S NAME IS SHE DOING IN MY ROOM AT 11:37PM?!

"Nudge, stop bouncing on my bed or I'll kick your sorry butt to South Africa, I swear…" I said crankily. Not the best threat I've ever made but I still wasn't thinking straight.

She wasn't fazed.

I groaned and my arm shot out from under the covers, grabbing whatever came into contact with my palm. My hand grasped a column of warm flesh and I yanked forcefully.

When I opened my eyes slits, Nudge was lying down right beside me on my bed, complete with shining wide eyes and a gigantic smile on her face.

I rolled on to my other side, facing the shelves on the wall.

"But Max, you have to get up!" She continued in her perky voice. How could she be so _peppy_ at a time like this?!

I felt her shift and move to the end of my bed. She stuck her hand under the covers and grabbed _my_ ankle. I immediately knew what she was going to do.

"Nudge, if you tickle my foot I am not responsible for what happens to your face." I growled then I heard other people's voices laugh around me.

My eyes shot open in an instant and I pushed myself back with the heels of my feet, pulling the blanket to cover up until my neck.

Bad idea.

My head banged on the headboard violently and I clutched my skull in pain.

"MOTHER F—ather…" I altered my words towards the end due to a look from Fang. (yes, _Fang_ was there)

While still clutching the covers to my neck, I tried to rub sleep out of my eyes. When my vision cleared I noticed Nudge, Ella, Iggy and Fang were all in my room, staring at me.

**Mitzi reminds me of me. :P Just sayin'.**

**Anyway, I'm sorry I haven't posted in a long time. It's summer vaca for me and I'm abroad right now with other relatives so it's hard for me to find time to post. :) Please don't hate me.**

**And I know most of the chapters seem like filler chapters and you must be thinking, "Where the heck is she going with this??" but you'll find out sooner or later. As Jeb always says, 'It's part of the bigger picture.' **

**Just look at all the teeny tiny details and you'll get it eventually. :P**

**R&R! Spread the love (that is my story) and peace out.**

**.: Tifany :.**


	11. So called Protector

**YAY! 3 new Story Alert thingies! Thanks guys! And to your reviews:**

**5253Racer: Thank you so, **_**so**_** much! :D And everyone keeps asking that! Read on ;)**

**SharpestSatire: Haha! :)) And true dat. (badass nod) And thank you! :) Btw, when are you gonna update **_**your**_** story, girl? Haha!**

**emotionalpoemgirl: ****Je vous remercie! Saltiness…**

"Okay, what the _frick_ are you all doing in my room?" I spoke slowly, mortified.

"We were just watching you sleep, Max. It's very amusing…" Iggy joked.

I rolled my eyes and looked towards Fang, sending a message through my gaze._ "What's happening?"_

Fang stared back at me, intently into my eyes with his, answering, _"No idea. 'Got dragged into it."_

I sighed then looked at Nudge expectantly for an answer.

She took a deep breath and started her rant.

"Well Hunter's hosting a party at his house tonight and anybody who's anybody is going and I think some of you guys were invited and Ella and I want to go so we thought to bring you guys because we've never been to a high school party and it would be much more fun with you guys there but Iggy doesn't want go 'cause he might feel out of place and all lost and said he won't know anyone there aside from us and your usual friends and stuff and Fang doesn't want to go without you because he just doesn't so we all want you to go and we won't go if you won't go 'cause we want you to go so could we go, Max? Could we? Could we? _Could we?_" Nudge said all in one breath.

I stared at her for 3 seconds trying to process what she just said and finally, I gathered my thoughts.

"Hold up, who's Hunter?" I asked, yawning.

"He's the guy who flirts with every girl he sees. The one you call a 'gross sexist pig, someone should beat some dignity into him'…" Iggy said, sounding amused and Nudge snickered.

Now I remember him. He invited me too, last week. But as usual, his words went in my ear and out the other end.

I groaned. "Ew, don't remind me. He's worst than you, Ig."

"Okay, okay! So Max, can we go? _PU-LEASE_!" Ella begged.

"Let me think…" I said, tapping my chin. "No."

"But you have to go Max! It'd be so much more fun with you!" Nudge spoke up this time.

"No as in, I'm not allowing you to go." I said, lying back down and curling on my side.

"_MAX--!_"

"No Ella. From what I've seen in movies high school parties always end in disaster. And you know I get all paranoid about that kind of stuff I'm not risking it." Then I added. "Besides, what about Angel and Gazzy?"

"Max, you and I both know they're capable on their own. Angel's a 7-year old mind controller for crying out loud and Gazzy could blow up this house in 2 minutes flat by using only peach mango punch, a toothbrush and clay dough to his advantage." Nudge responded.

Dammit. She knew them all too well. And that little fun fact brought to you by Nudge actually did happen to a safe house back in Oklahoma. You guys know nothing.

"Max! Please! We want to go!" Ella pleaded, interrupting my thoughts.

"Guys, I'm sorry but first off, it's a school night so you guys shouldn't even be thinking about it at all and secondly, it could be dangerous. This won't end well." I said softly and shook my head.

Ella looked like she was about to argue but when she saw the look in my eyes, that I meant business and that I was anxious, she closed her mouth and looked away.

There was no other better sister out there in the world for me but Ella. Because she was so understanding and accepting about what I was and the situation we were in. She considers the flock as her siblings and loves them all the same and she's given up so much just for me. She moved to Connecticut, left all her friends in Arizona, just to protect the flock and she tries so hard to know and understand how we feel. Maybe I should go? That was a crazy thought. But she deserves something in return, for everything.

I sighed, my head throbbing with different thoughts fighting with themselves in my head, and was about to say something when Nudge exploded, her reaction to my statement opposite to Ella's.

"_Max_, we haven't been in danger for almost a year now! Get over it! It's _just_ a high school party; what could happen? And don't be so selfish! Could we at least have fun for just this one time and let go of all of it? Have fun like normal teenagers?" She shrieked doing hand gestures.

So she was asking me to put aside the stress and the fear I feel after all this time so I could feel something different? Feel normal? That was too impossible. Stress and fear were the only things I've ever known.

More thoughts flooded though me again.

I want so badly to protect my family as best as I could and it would hurt me too if they got hurt. The flock and my mother and sister were my family; I promised myself before that I wouldn't let anything happen to them. 'Cause when 8 people (that's including Total. I can't say I don't love him, he's flock to me) mean the world to you, they're all you can ever depend on.

But the thing is, I don't own them. I can never own them. I'm flock leader, sure, but I couldn't control them. They made their own decision because like I've always told Jeb, 'We have minds of our own; no one can tell us what to do'. Not even me.

And right now I could tell Ella and Nudge wanted to go _so _badly, even though I knew this party reeked of trouble. And I knew I couldn't stop them no matter what but still felt an overwhelming fierceness to protect them.

I did the only thing I knew I could do.

I closed my eyes tight and groaned, before jumping out of bed.

Ella and Nudge shrieked and squealed and happy danced when they realized what I was doing and I tuned it off immediately.

Usually I was conscious about anyone seeing me in my night clothes. I regularly just wore either baggy pajama pants, sweats or short shorts and big t-shirts or tank tops. I don't care what I wear but these were serious worn out things with overstretched garter, faded dyes and some were even already hanging. No one saw me in my night clothes (except Fang sometimes but we were in the dark and I was careful to wear my sweats and t-shirts). I wouldn't let clothes go to waste so I used the ratty tatty stuff for nighttime.

But tonight I was distracted so I jumped up without thinking and marched to my desk. I only realized I was wearing my ragged short shorts and tight not to mention _hanging_ tank top when I heard Fang and Iggy's distinct chuckles. (I'm guessing Fang told Iggy. Yey.)

I pretended I didn't care and grabbed the random shirt hanging from my desk chair before sweeping past them to get to the bathroom.

Once inside, I splashed cold water on my face and ran a brush through my hair.

I changed out of the flimsy tank top that I would never wear out of my room and put on a bra before slipping on the shirt I grabbed, which happens to be some dark purple shirt dress mom bought a while back. I then put on some denim shorts I found on the counter in the bathroom that I wasn't sure how long I'd left it there.

I brushed my teeth and looked at myself in the mirror.

It was obvious I was sleepy with the dark rings under my eyes but I just waved it off and came out of the bathroom.

I brought my boots out from my closet and slipped them on my feet.

"Okay…let's get this over with." I said yawning and exited my room, the rest behind me.

Fang drove with Iggy in the passenger seat as I fell asleep leaning on Ella.

Sadly, it only took us a few minutes to get there because Hunter's house was in the village.

"Max, we're here." Ella shook me and we all got out of the car.

Okay, Hunter's house was _big_.

It was a mix of whites, greys and glass all over. It had a lot of sharp angles and the whole house seemed to be L-shaped. The front door was frosted glass and when Fang rang the doorbell, lo and behold, Hunter answered it.

"Hey guys! Glad you could make it!" He greeted them then suddenly noticed me beside Iggy and put his Lady Killer face on. "Hey gorgeous…"

Everyone snickered. I glared at Hunter, though I wasn't sure if it still had the same effect due to the fact that I had eye bags as big as double-deck buses and was sleep-deprived.

He flinched. Oh yeah, I still got it.

"Call me gorgeous again and I'll cut your tongue off." I threatened.

Hunter stared at me incredulously as Nudge and Ella pulled me away.

"Let's not threaten the host, shall we…"

I rolled my eyes at that and as we entered deeper into the house we all found out it was chaos.

8th graders to juniors were all drinking, smoking, eating, talking, dancing, locking lips with each other and all those nasty stuff it sickened me.

The tight spaces, the loud thumping club music that vibrated the floor and how dark and insane the atmosphere was made me feel weird to be here. Not to mention the countless number of people dancing and rubbing on each other.

"And you guys wanted to go to this party?" I said though my words were drowned out by the music.

The girls walked beside me while Fang held my hand (I don't really think people would notice us; besides, brothers and sisters can hold hands right?) and Iggy kept a finger through my belt loop as we walked deeper into the house.

When I turned around to talk to them, I saw that the girls weren't beside me anymore.

My heart quickened and my eyes darted back and forth in the darkness, scanning for their familiar figures in the club lights as they swirled all around us.

I suddenly felt Fang squeeze my hand and leaned down to whisper in my ear, "Relax Max. I saw them go off to find their friends. They can take care of themselves."

I took a deep breath.

He was right. Everything's fine.

We continued to walk deeper into the party, my paranoia rising, heading for the pool area outside the living room which we saw was less crowded and loud. I sighed internally in relief that most of the party was inside the house and that we could probably just wait it out there.

We strode forward forcefully, trying to get through the sea of dancing bodies desperately. It was like taking 2 steps forward then 3 steps back; people bodies so packed together it was like pushing brick walls.

A couple of times some random guys started to try to dance with me; I shoved them away non-too lightly. I also noticed that some girls would occasionally grab Fang's jacket or arm or whatever body part they could get a hold on and try to get him to dance with them; he shoved them away with a clear look of disgust on his face.

We were now close to the double doors that led to the garden, a few more steps and we were free from all this commotion when I felt that familiar tug on my waist go limp.

Oh please no.

I whipped around quickly and spewed some extra colorful words that the rainbow ain't got nothin' on it.

We lost Iggy.

Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap…

I turned to face Fang and he immediately got the message once he saw the look on my face.

"Go outside. I'll find him. We'll meet you there." He said determined. I nodded once and then I felt his hand slip away from mine, off to look for our blind best friend who was probably so lost right now I was scared for him.

Oh please let Fang find him fast…

I just _knew_ tonight was going to go wrong.

Once I got outside, I went to the drinks table right beside the pool where Fang would be able to see me when he comes out.

I looked around the big garden, taking in the soft-looking green grass with patches of flowers off to the sides and the huge rectangular pool made of grey and black tiles.

They were a couple of people outside in the garden too, about 15 people give or take which was relatively few considering the amount of people inside the house. Most were on the other side of the garden, either making out with someone or just chatting with others away from the craziness. I looked away, not wanting to associate with anyone at the moment.

I poured myself a drink to stay awake and nearly choked the next second spitting it out all over the pretty grass when the strawberry juice certainly did _not_ taste like strawberry juice.

A warm sensation burned in the back of my throat and I groaned in pleasure and pain. It was spiked.

Well now I was awake!

I set the plastic cup down and leaned against the table, praying that Fang had found Iggy and were making their way outside right now.

I really considered going back it that mess to look for the both of them.

I was looking off into the other direction of the garden, over the fence and into the dark deep sky, thinking about how great it would feel to fly at a night like this which was the right temperature when I suddenly felt an arm around my shoulders and I was pressed into someone's chest.

I jumped a little and looked up, my gaze immediately falling on the guy holding me. Aiden.

Fun-freakin'-tastic timing.

"Hey Cam." He smiled down at me and the look in his eyes told me he was thinking inappropriate things.

I slapped his hand away and glared at him, "Go away Aiden if you know what's good for you." I growled. I was so _not_ in the mood for this kind of shit.

"I think _you_ know what's good for _me_." He drawled, smiling like a maniac.

I pushed him away and decided to ignore him. Oh God, what was taking Fang so long…

"Aww…Don't be like that babe!" He scooted closer to me.

I continued to keep quiet, hoping he's just give up. Aiden wasn't worth getting all riled up for anyway. He was just some cocky lunatic with raging hormones. It's sad, really.

"I said leave me alone." I told him in the most polite voice I could muster which came out through clenched teeth. I was already being nice.

"I'm sorry but it's hard to resist. You look really hot tonight." I could hear the smile in his voice, trying to sound seductive.

Note to self: Dress in sweat pants and a huge shirt the next time we go to a house party. Also, don't brush your teeth.

I swiveled around and started to get away from him.

Okay, I don't care if I was leaving our meeting place. That was _way_ too uncomfortable. I also didn't want to make a scene.

But as I took my first step, Aiden gripped my wrist and spun me around, making me stumble into him.

I was too stunned to break his collar bone and send him flying like I would have when he shocked me even more by gripping the back of my neck and rested his other hand on my waist as pressed his lips to mine.

SON OF A BITCH.

Luckily, I was able to regain my composure in 0.6 seconds as I stepped on his toe harshly then kneed him in the stomach to pull away from him.

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT AIDEN?" I screeched and wiped my lips with the back of my hand in revulsion. I usually just cuss mentally but this was so f-bomb worthy right now.

He licked his lips right in front of me and grinned to himself.

That disgusting little…

Okay, calm down Maximum Ride.

I was trying to live a normal life. I can't keep going around beating up people who bother me even though I could have killed him in seconds. No, I was doing this for the flock, my sister and my mom. No rushing into things without thinking…

My plan was to leave him here and go find Fang or anybody else I knew so I wouldn't have to deal with Aiden. I'd probably put off my anger on Ella or Nudge later but I had to get away from Aiden to avoid sucker punching him right then and there.

I was letting him off easy.

I strode quickly away from him but not quick enough as I was instantly pulled back again.

He grabbed my arm and then my waist, pressing me to him.

Oh, to hell with morals. It takes minutes to get my temper down and only a few short seconds to lose it. That already explains a lot.

Don't blame me for the next part; instincts kicked in.

I pushed his chest roughly so that we were apart and he bent forward, clutching his torso. Then my right knee shot up, directly on his face and he screamed in pain as his body snapped back, ramrod straight. Then for a finale, I twisted my torso to the left and lashed out with the same leg, my legs a perfect 150 degree angle, to kick him _still_ in the face forcefully without skipping a beat. This all happened in about 3 seconds.

Imagine dribbling a soccer ball once then kicking it except I was using his face.

I didn't think I kicked that hard but Aiden stumbled backwards, holding his bloody face in pain in his hands. He was only able to curse for a fraction of a second as he fell backwards, still clutching his face, into the beautiful grey and black pool I admired a while ago.

That also happened in 3 seconds flat.

As his body plunged deeper into the cold blue pool a sudden burst of faint red spread through the water, looking like a blooming flower of pinkish ink.

I stared at his form sinking in the water, complete with slack jaw and wide eyes for a millisecond before I snapped out of it and turned towards the glass doors.

I acted fast, using my speed, that the people outside only started to notice what was happening when I was twisting the door handles to the living room.

**Sorry this took a while to post. My 9 year-old cousin kept bugging me to play hotel626. You guys should try it too. :P**

**And oooh! It's a sorta-cliffy! :O **

**Okay, I gotta admit, this is a filler chapter. I couldn't resist. Haha! :))**

**But the chapter before this one is a piece to the puzzle even though it doesn't seem like it. Read between the lines… No one's guessed anything yet. :P**

**I wrote this at 4am so if there are mistakes, do tell. :))**

**OH! And if you have any ideas about the story/what you want to happen. I'm all ears! :D**

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	12. A Panicked Max

**GAH! 4 Story Alert things and only 1 of them reviewed! :( I'm kinda sad…**

**Anyways, replies to the people:**

**SharpestSatire: I'm so happy someone's actually excited about this story! XD And I do realize that; it's going to be talked about in this chapter. I also gave in to the request because originally there wasn't going to be any but then I was like, 'Oh, what the heck…' and added it towards the end. :) And YAY! I'm excited about your story. Haha!**

**Bubbley-chan: Thank you for the suggestions! And thus, her rant. :P**

**Back to the story. Enjoy!**

I pushed past the brick-like mass with haste, not sure which way I was going but not really caring, trying to look calm on the outside.

I wasn't sure, but I think I saw Zach and Mitzi with a bunch of other people in one of the rooms I was passing by. I didn't go towards them to find out for sure because I wasn't just looking for people to hang out with anymore. I had to find my family and get the heck out of here.

I felt like I was pacing in circles over and over when I suddenly bumped into something hard, expecting it to be some stranger. When I looked up, I realized that I had rammed right into Fang, my palms on his broad chest.

I just about screamed with relief as I pulled him into a hug. "Oh my God, Fang! Thank God it's you!" And yeah, I know I didn't use his alias. I didn't care at the moment; I was too overwhelmed with joy that I found him.

I pulled away slightly and he looked at me with an amused expression on his face.

"Yes _Cam_, it's me." He raised an eyebrow as to why I jumped him.

I snapped out of my happy state and went into serious mode when I faintly heard people screaming Aiden's name. Right.

"We have to get out of here. Did you find Iggy?" I asked and at that moment Iggy came out from behind Fang and waved at me.

"Over here Mrs. Ecstatic. Want to give me a hug too?" He asked sarcastically and opened his arms, fake-smiling.

I punched his arm but whispered to Fang, "Praise the Lord, you found him."

He raised an eyebrow and faced Fang, pointing to me, "Since when did she become so religious?"

Now I punched him in the stomach. Hard.

"Quit that! We have to _go_. _Now_. Where are the girls?"

When they noticed the tone of my voice Iggy stopped smiling and I could see them go into serious mode too.

"Still with their friends. I saw them a couple of times when I was looking for Igster. We could go find them--"

"No, that would take too long. Let's go out and just call their phones." Yeah, that was my best idea at the moment so sue me.

I grabbed both Iggy and Fang's hands and dragged them towards the direction of the front door. Or I think it was the direction of the front door.

Actually any direction was fine as long as it was away from the garden.

Once we found our way outside and ran to our car, I leaned against it, panting heavily.

"Max, what's hap--"

I held up my finger to Iggy and dialed Ella. I told Fang to call Nudge.

"Ella. Meet us outside by the car. Now." I spoke urgently then ended the call.

"Did you call Nudge?" I turned to Fang and he nodded once.

"Max, what's going on?" He asked.

"Yeah, it sounds like you killed someone." Iggy scoffed.

I looked down at my tanned legs, still leaning on our car. "I-I'm not sure if I did." I whispered.

Iggy's jaw dropped and Fang's eyes widened a fraction of an inch.

I ignored their looks and paced the side of the car.

After about 3 minutes (which felt to me like ages) Nudge and Ella both strode towards us, laughing about something with their heads bend together.

"Is there something wrong?" Ella asked, her voice still tinged with laughter. No one needed to answer her question because when she saw the look in my face, she immediately understood and her smile dropped.

I ushered everyone inside the car and got into the driver's seat fast, reversing the car in a spin and stepping on the gas pedal violently.

The whole car trip home was quiet with tension and the silence was only broken when we all reached the kitchen.

"Okay Max, what did you do?" Nudge said slowly, her eyes big.

"I didn't do anything! Why does everyone always think of me when something goes wrong?" I exclaimed.

They all raised their eyebrows and gave me a look.

"Okay, okay!" I threw my hands up in exasperation. Jeez…

I walked over to the marble counter and jumped to sit on it, leaning forward with my elbows on my knees.

When the rest saw this was going to be a long story they all took seats around the island. When they all got comfy, they all turned towards me.

And so I told them everything. Because I owed them an explanation and I think it would be best if they knew the gravity of the situation.

When I finished telling them what happened, they all stared at me with wide eyes and shocked expressions (except Fang but you already know that).

"Aiden _kissed_ you?" Fang asked, anger evident in his eyes.

"You beat him _senseless_?" Ella spoke, stunned.

"You made him _fall_ into the pool?" Nudge added, looking just as stunned as Ella.

"There was a _pool_ outside?" Iggy said randomly.

We all turned to stare at Iggy with WTF expressions and Fang flicked him on the head.

"What! Pools are awesome…" He said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Iggy, that's not important!" I screeched and jumped off the counter. I walked towards them and slammed my palms on the island, making a loud smacking sound.

"I-I'm not sure if I hit him too hard. He caught me off guard and--"

"Damn!" Iggy interrupted, chuckling to himself, "Poor Aiden… A blood-lusting, adrenaline-high Max is one thing, but a surprised, unsuspecting Max? Now that's a whole different story." Iggy laughed to himself.

"IGGY! _Please!_ Be serious! The last thing I saw was blood gushing all over the pool, I could've killed him! I mean, I'm okay with killing a bunch of Erasers--"

At that, I heard Ella yelp and I clamped my mouth shut.

"Sorry. But you get the idea. I hurt him like I would them. We can't go around kil- I mean, hurting innocent people, even if they aren't so innocent, and what if he tells people it was me? He's going to tell people it was me! And everyone's going to go all suspicious and we're going to have to move again and things were just working out and it's all my fault because of this stupid high school party that we shouldn't have even gone to! And whe--"

"Max! _Stop!_ You're turning into Nudge!" Ella shouted.

"Hey!" Nudge protested but we all ignored her.

"Max, look. If moving solves everything, then I'm okay with that." Ella said and smiled tentatively at me. Whenever Ella says things like that it always makes me feel bad.

"Yeah. And besides, I doubt Aiden would tell anyone." Iggy included. I looked up at him and raised my eyebrows. As if he saw the question in my eyes, he answered. "He's a _guy_. Any normal teenage guy wouldn't admit to some quiet, pretty blonde new girl beating the daylights out of him. They're too proud for that. That, and no one would believe him anyway." He smiled at the last part.

"Yeah! He would know. He's a _guy_." Ella put emphasis on the last part, rolling her eyes.

I stared at him for a moment then stared my hands on the counter, my mind going at a mile a second.

I sighed loudly and dropped my hands to my sides.

"You guys are probably right. It's just I didn't want to be the one to ruin it for everyone. I mean, we have friends here and all and everything's just fine and I don't want to blow our cover. I guess I overreacted."

Yeah, that was a little too much drama for me. But think about it: wouldn't some normal teenage girl be in _so_ much trouble if she dribbled the face of the some popular dude, causing said dude to fall in a pool without knowing if he ever drowned, died of hypothermia (the water must have been _freezing_) or just died because of the damage to his face? If he told somebody it was me, people would start to gossip and get all nosy and soon people might find out I was Maximum Ride. That would mean we would have to move again. I didn't want to wreck what we had here, because it was actually something good and the flock was happy here. Maybe just as happy as we were back in the E-house because we didn't have to keep running for our lives.

Or maybe I was just over-thinking all of this.

Ugh. My brain hurt.

Now that that was settled, I looked towards the clock and groaned. Only a few more hours till we had to get ready for school.

I sighed and faced them again.

"We should sleep. We've got school tomorrow." I frowned.

"True dat." Iggy said and yawned, stretching his arms. While we were all making our way to the stairs, Fang grabbed my wrist and pulled me aside to the hallway just before the staircase.

"Max, are you alright?" He asked, his voice dripping with concern even though I couldn't really see his face in the dark.

"I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" I asked him.

"Just making sure. It's just, I thought…" His voice trailed off.

"I was actually wondering if you were okay." I said, holding his hand in the darkness. Moonlight was shining through the windows and I was only able to see the outlines of his face and the left side of his body.

"And why wouldn't I be?" He questioned this time.

Now, I blushed.

Okay, I knew it was a stupid thought, but I was kind of wondering if Fang was…jealous.

Yeah, I went there.

I mean, I was his girlfriend. Wouldn't he feel mad about Aiden pulling one on me? Even if I kneed and kicked him in the face, wouldn't he feel the need to hurt him more for touching me? I probably sound so highly of myself right now but it's human nature to feel jealous, right?

"It's nothing." I dropped my head to keep him from seeing how red my face was. I was thinking about just brushing past him; too bad out minds work on the same frequency.

"Oh." Was all he said for a moment and when I tried yanking my hand back, he tightened his hold.

"Well honestly, I'm jealous," I could hear the smirk in his voice, "but just a little bit. 'Not something to get all furious about. You got to hurt him for it anyway and I know you're capable of protecting yourself. You don't need me--"

At that I looked up.

"Of course I need you." I protested, squeezing his hand in mine now. But he acted like he didn't hear me.

"Besides, I'm happy."

"Yeah?" I questioned. I'm glad he wasn't planning on doing something stupid though I was a tinsy bit disappointed. What a weird feeling.

"Why would I," He stepped forward towards me so to our faces were only inches apart, "be jealous of him, when I already won? I have you, Max." His hand went up to stroke my cheek, "You only love me." He continued, the smirk on his face grew wider. I punched him in the stomach, but only jokingly, because what he was saying was true.

"You keep telling yourself that."

"And I only love you." He continued, and his breath was on my face.

At that moment, he let go of my hand and with both of his, he held my face delicately in his palms and kissed me.

**EH. I'm sorry if that last part wasn't good. I'm more of a plot person, not really fluff so I'm not really good with fax.**

**So explanation: Fang's content with what he has because no matter what, Max will always be his and vice versa. :)**

**And I'm sorry that this chapter was bad. :| I kinda have writer's block and I'm always doing stuff and the next part's kinda boring. Not so inspired.**

**On an ever lower note: the next chapter's a sorta-filler chapter. I don't expect a lot of reviews then.**

**And on the lowest note: I might not update in a while 'cause I'm going on a family vacation for 10 days so I might update in 2 weeks. :P Sorry.**

**Suggestions? Reviews?**

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	13. Can't Take Ten

**Reply to reviews:**

**Bubbley-chan: That **_**would**_** be funny, but I wouldn't know how to recover from that. :| Though I've typed out something like that. ;)**

**IzzAy: I'll take that as a compliment. Thank you for reading my story and for putting me in your favorites. :) **

**SharpestSatire: (referring to the guy-ego thing) DUDE, I KNOW RIGHT? :O And that's **_**exactly**_** that. :P Even Fang has his arrogant side. ;) Thanks again for the review!**

***not related to my story* That's too cool! (about your other story) It just goes to show how much of a good writer you are! :) And no prob. :D You better update soon; the latest chapter you put up was amazing. O.O I am curious now! XP**

**ninjastar954: I did! It sort of helped and I listen to music all the time (When my earphones broke it was a tragedy. No joke.) but I'm getting sick of my music. Do you have any suggestions? :) **

**Okay, so I'm sorry for the late update. See, the thing is, I have the whole story planned out and I know what's going to happen when and how but to put it simply: I don't know how to put the scenario into words. Catch my drift? I've typed out some of the future scenes because when ideas come to my head I just have to type it but all my pre-typed chapters have run out and I have to type things from the top of my head now. And school's about to start so I'm all bisay. :( **

**So I'm telling you all now that I might not update every week like I used to 1.) 'cause of stupid school and 2.) because I have to type out chapters again. :| **

**I'm sorry again but for now, I hope you enjoy :D**

"Ig, pass me another one." Gazzy said and was thrown another fist-sized bomb.

I looked towards the 2 and it looked like things were going fine with them. Iggy and Gazzy were planting bombs in different places in this huge Itex office so that 1.) Itex would be disoriented and wouldn't know what was missing and 2.) so that we could clean up any track we left. Itex had a lot of haters anyway. It could be anyone.

Right now, Nudge and Fang were on the computers with Nudge cracking the passwords and codes and Fang navigating and getting some info on the other branches and experiments.

Things were going so smoothly that Angel and I, the people on watch, were just sitting on the office chairs, waiting.

Angel was twirling a curl of blond hair in her fingers absent-mindedly and sighed.

I was bored too. No action tonight. I fiddled with my fingers on my lap, my mind wandering.

As expected, Aiden didn't go to school the next day. We found out he was hospitalized and wouldn't be back for about a week. Luckily, Iggy's theory was right. Aiden didn't tell anybody it was me. Actually, he didn't tell anybody anything at all. His friends who accompanied him to the hospital asked him what happened and all he said was, "It's nothing."

Tss…yeah right.

Everybody's spreading rumors and wondering who did it. Thankfully, we're probably the last people anybody would suspect.

At least Aiden was keeping his disgusting mouth shut. There was no need to panic and move places again.

This Itex branch in Georgia looked so much like an apartment building that I wouldn't have thought it was even Itex from the outside. But once we got inside, we knew we were at the right place.

We haven't found the Itex branch in Florida (which is the main office, might I remind you) because now that Itex was exposed to a lot of leaders and higher-ups, they were keeping on the down-low.

I got snapped out of my reverie when I heard footsteps out in the hall. They were too light and at the same time too heavy to be experiments so they could only be one thing: human.

Before I could voice it out, Iggy beat me to it and said in a soft voice. "There are guards coming. About 10 of them." He looked up from the desk he'd been ducking under.

"I hear them too, Ig. Guys, take all the time you need. I'll go deal with them." I said and stood up from the chair I'd been lounging on.

"I'll come with you." Angel stood up too and began to follow me when I stopped her.

"There's no need, Angel. It's just 10 guards. Why don't you…supervise? We're almost done anyway." I said and ruffled her blonde head.

She looked like she was about to protest when I gave her a look. She clamped her mouth shut.

I nodded to Fang across the room and he nodded back, giving him a signal in case anything happened while I was gone. I then made my way to the double doors through the maze of cubicles that led to the hall, being extra quiet so as to not set them off.

I slipped out of the office area and pressed myself against the wall, looking down the narrow semi-bright hall to see 10 guards in black uniforms marching down in formation with guns slung behind their backs.

This was going to be easy.

I pushed myself off the wall and walked towards them normally. They all turned towards me with confused expressions written all over their faces, probably wondering what a teenage girl was doing here.

Call me cocky, but didn't they know who I was?

I smiled brightly at them and continued to walk forward.

"Hi. You probably don't know me but let's not waste time and get this over." I said and when I was close enough to the guard at the center, I jumped with my knee bent and kicked him hard in the face with my other foot, guard number one's face snapping to the side and spewing blood and saliva. Once he crumpled to the ground, I leaped over him and strode towards guard number two, wrapping my fingers around his neck swiftly while my right leg swung behind me and trapped guard number three against the wall, my foot on his throat. I twisted my body around, throwing guard number two against the third and moved on without skipping a beat.

And that's when the rest of the guards finally processed what was going on. Dimwits…

It's pretty much how I dealt with the rest. It was a flurry of kicks and punches that would take too long to describe it all.

Then I was down to the last, the tenth guard. We were a few feet apart and he poised himself in the middle of the hall, ready to attack.

His gun was still slung on his back but none of the guards really used their guns after what they saw me do to guard number five. Hehe.

Their unconscious bodies were scattered all around us, slumped and curled up left and right. It only took me a few seconds to deal with them and I was betting the flock was done, just waiting for my signal. Time to get this over with.

I ran towards him and he swung his fist at me, but I ducked and slid underneath him between his legs in a crouch. I then back-flipped behind him, landing on him with my legs wrapped around his neck. This brought us both crashing down to the floor.

I picked myself up, as did the guard and just as we were about to go in for another round, guard number ten suddenly froze in place.

Wait what?

He straightened up from his crouch, his eyes blank, and fell to the ground. Just like that.

I stared at his form on the ground in confusion for a moment, wondering what the hell happened before it hit me.

I turned around and narrowed my eyes immediately because standing at the end of the hall was none other than Angel, smiling angelically at me.

"Angel," I said angrily, walking towards her. "I said I got it. Why didn't you stay inside?"

"You took too long. You needed my help." She said innocently.

"No, I didn't. And that was less than a minute! What are you talking about?"

"If you had let me help you it would have taken even less time." She gave me a look. "Besides, we're supposed to help each other with anything anyway." And she had the gull to use a tone on me.

I studied Angel carefully, looking at her face. What she was saying was true; the flock helped one another no matter what. But she and I both knew 10 guards was easy. Not to sound arrogant or anything but I knew I could handle it. Did she think I couldn't?

Maybe I was just taking everything too personally.

Even with my rationalized thoughts, I haven't cooled down yet and I walked past Angel, fuming.

Through my peripheral view, I saw Angel stumble backwards a few steps and a look of shock crossed her face.

Yeah, that's right.

When I re-entered the office area, I made my way back to where the flock was and sat on the office chair where I sat before, putting my feet up on the table. Fang gave me a look, asking me through his eyes if everything was alright.

"Yeah. Whatever." I said and rolled my eyes. He didn't miss that last bit.

The usual Nudge Channel came on again as we flew home, ranting about some party this weekend. I flew a little bit ahead of the others, their chatter a little too loud for me as a throbbing headache started to develop.

Something like a shadow suddenly swooped beneath me and flew to my side, so swift and graceful I was momentarily distracted.

I snapped out of it when Fang called my attention. "Max…?"

"Uhh…yeah?" I said unintelligibly.

"Max, what's wrong?" He gave me a look.

There was always an upside that Fang knew me so well: he could tell when something was bothering me.

But there was also a downside that he knew me so well: he could tell when something was bothering me.

I sighed and flew a little closer to him, lowering my voice even if the others couldn't hear me.

"Angel kinda pissed me off a while ago. It's like she didn't think I could handle the guards back at Itex when I told her I didn't need her help." I shook my head. "It's shallow anyway and I'm over it, don't worry about it." I tried to smile at him but I think it ended up looking sad.

He smiled tentatively back at me. "Don't let it get to you, Max. Angel just wants some attention. Everything's going to be fine." He encouraged.

I nodded, trusting his words. He was right; I always over-think things.

It looked like he was about to say something but suddenly it was like I couldn't hear anymore. Something deep within my ears burst with pain and I hissed, though a scream would have been more appropriate.

I knew I was still flapping my wings but I had stopped and was just hovering in the air, curled up into a ball. I pressed my palms against my ears, trying to make it go away.

It was piercing. Like I couldn't hear anything at all and like I was hearing every single sound ever made at the same time. It felt like spears were shoved into my ears just for the fun of it.

I thought covering my ears would shut the sensation out but I was locking it in. And then I couldn't take it anymore; I shrieked.

"MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT GO AWAY!" I yelled, squeezing my eyes tight while still covering my ears. I clenched my jaw tight, so tight that breaking my jaw seemed like a good idea right now. I didn't know what else to do.

It hurt _so_ much. How do I make it stop? When will it stop?

I held my breath to keep from screaming again. This had to go away eventually, right? It always did.

I felt tears, actual tears, fall down my cheeks but I didn't care at the moment.

Why was this happening anyway? What was happening to me?

I should have gotten used to this by now.

And then, like the past was replaying itself, it was slowly seeping away. My ears felt like they were throbbing and I was scared to take my hands away from my ears in fear of seeing blood in them.

Jeebus. Why do all the aches and pain always happen to me?

I blinked my blurry eyes a few times to see the flock all hovering in front of me like some picture, all spaced out but trying to get closer. They all also wore identical expressions of panic. Like always.

I waved my hand, gesturing to give me space and in unison, they all flew back a few feet.

Before they started asking questions I made it a point to answer first.

"Yes, I'm fine now. I don't know what happened to me, it was like I couldn't hear for a moment and…I can't really explain but my ears felt like they were bleeding. No, I don't need help and yes, I'm sure." I said in one breath.

The flock, who were holding their breath with questions, all exhaled when I was done. Yeah, it was a normal thing already: Me getting some pain attack anywhere in my body (usually a headache) and them asking if I was alright and what happened.

Ugh. This shouldn't become a habit.

I wiped my tears with the back of my hand swiftly before anyone brought up the topic of me crying. And then it was complete silence.

Silence and the faint sound of wings flapping.

We all hovered there awkwardly and I could bet you the flock were conflicted if they should ask me if I was sure I was okay or if we should continue to fly home already.

I decided I should break the silence; I wasn't feeling too well anyway.

"Umm…you know what? Imma fly home ahead. I don't feel too well." I said and rubbed the back of my neck.

"Are you sick?" Iggy asked and I shook my head.

"Nah. I'm fine. I'll just…see you guys at home." I finished and swerved in the air, pouring on the super speed and going from 0 to 250mph in a few seconds without looking back at he flock to see their reactions.

If I was going to go through anything like that again tonight I didn't want them to see me.

That night, already clad in pajamas, I was shoving all my books and homework into my backpack by my desk when I heard the door to my room creak.

"Ever heard of knocking?" I threw behind my back to the person who tried to 'stealthily' enter my room.

"I don't think that rule applies to me." I heard a smooth, deep, sexy voice reply and when I turned around, I saw no one other than Fang standing near the door, a smirk plastered on his face.

I groaned. "I still need my privacy. What if I was changing clothes or something?" I said and immediately regretted it. Changing clothes? What the hell… DON'T GIVE HIM IDEAS!

I pressed my lips together tightly, feeling a blush creep across my cheeks.

I turned my back towards him again and continued to dump my notes into my bag impassively, hoping he wouldn't bring up what I just said. I could just imagine Fang grinning behind me…

"But we don't keep secrets from each other, remember?" his voice sounded like he was right behind me.

Oh he did _not_ just say that.

It was like an automatic response: my fist shot up, aimed directly at his jaw for an upper-cut but Fang was just as fast and he caught my fist in his palm, a few inches from his face.

My glare got lost in his intense gaze and suddenly, I was just staring into his eyes.

His cocky grin turned into the soft smile that only I've ever seen and he pulled his hand forward, with my fist still in his, making me stumble into him.

"I'm sorry. Taunting you is just so much fun."

I kept my face straight and stayed a few inches away from him even though his proximity gave me the butterflies. I crossed my arms over my chest and raised an eyebrow.

"So, what'd you come here for?" I questioned.

Slowly, he wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. We were standing on front of each other, looking into each others eyes and trying to have a normal conversation. I'm not sure if this is typical.

"Max, I really need to know if you're okay." He said seriously now.

I rolled my eyes. "Not this again! Fang, I'm perfectly fine. Great actually." I said sarcastically. "Why do you keep asking? Do you feel that something's wrong?" I asked, playing innocent.

He looked away for a moment, towards my balcony then sighed and looked at me again. "I dunno. I just can't quite put my finger on it. I'm sorry Max, if my caring so much bothers you but you've been having a lot of headaches lately… Is the Voice bothering you again?"

Actually, I'm touched Fang still asks about my well-being. I'm also surprised that he's put up with my insanity for so long.

"No, not really. The Voice actually talked to me last week but it hasn't come up ever since. It's probably throwing a tantrum again or something." I chuckled lightly to myself for a moment then faced him again. "Fang, stop worrying about me. I don't need drama right now, I just want normalness. Or as close to normalness as we'll ever get." I ran my hand through his hair then kissed him on the lips fast.

"Now go back to bed. We've got school tomorrow."

He nodded, let go of me and was turning towards the door already when he swerved around again. "Something just…feels different. If anything happens, if you know something, please tell us. The flock's worried about you too." He gave a small nod before leaving my room for good.

And then I started to drown in guilt.

I stood there by my desk, breathing heavily. I didn't know what to do anymore.

I wasn't very good at keeping secrets from the flock as I used to be, especially from Fang. He could read me like an open book! And he knows something…

And aside from the fact that I was dying, something _is_ different. I could feel it too.

Everything's changing now and when I allowed myself to think about it I found that I'm actually scared. Scared of what we've come to.

There are so many problems right now I just want to fly away to some deserted forest and scream till no sound could come out of my mouth anymore. Scream all my problems away.

Oh if only…

But this is me we're talking about. The universe just loves to hate me.

So now, the most major (I'm so stressed right now I don't care if that was redundant) problems I face right now are:

1.) Whether I should tell my family I was going to drop dead literally anytime in the next few weeks.

2.) To find out what the hell is happening right now.

3.) To get the answers to my questions using any means possible.

4.) Save the world.

So let's see:

1.) Uhh….NEXT.

2.) This was too vague. I know that _something_'s wrong, I just don't know what that _something_ is.

3.) Any means possible…maybe on our next mission we could get info on more than just the other branches? Maybe we can get stuff about us. Find out the truth we've been so deprived of.

4.) Just…no. Not yet.

The safest at the moment was number three.

It connects to some of the other problems and it's the easiest. I think.

I was determined to smoothen things out. Fix this mess before it gets uglier.

The first step to solving these problems were to know the problem.

I needed some answers.

**Oh my. I hope this chapter wasn't so bad. :| I typed it out early in the morning so if there are mistakes (and if some things don't make sense at all… -_-) please say so.**

**Tell me what you think. :P **

**R&R! Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	14. Author's Note

**Hey guys. :) I hate it when authors make a whole chapter an AN and I hate myself for doing it too but I need to make some things to you guys clear.**

**I hope you guys don't think I completely copied off my whole idea from the book. I've been typing this story down in my laptop since September 2009, before book 6 got released. I was sort of concocting my own idea of how MR6 would turn out after I read book 5 and surprisingly I was half-correct. :) Like, after I read MAX I was ranting to my friends about how jerky Angel was and my friends and I were like, "What if they kicked her out of the flock and she tries, but fails, to be leader?" and so I wrote down what I thought. **

**My story isn't **_**exactly**_** like FANG, but some of the ideas are almost the same so I'm telling you guys now that some things might be the same. **

**It's okay if you stop reading my story (thought I will be sad) but I don't want anybody flaming me. I hate that feeling. :(**

**Also, please don't hate me if I don't update for a while. I have to get my writing vibes back and I'm also depressed about personal reasons.**

**You can review if you want to though :) Reviews encourage me to post and they make me happy.**

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany:.**


	15. The Other Side

**Hey. :) Thanks for being so understanding you guys. A lot of you have said that this story isn't like FANG at all but I haven't even reached the climax yet. :| School starts tomorrow so I tried to type up as much as I could. Hopefully, I can get back my writing streak/vibe/whatever you call it back. :P**

**Reply to the reviews:**

**Fugundus: YEAH? :O Wait – what's a ghostwriter? Haha! :D And I am too, sad I mean. I wrote a one shot about that but something's so wrong about it, I'm not posting it yet. :P**

**SharpestSatire: Dude, we've discussed FANG, remember? :D I've read it and hated it. *sigh* Also, thanks for understanding and for being so encouraging. :) And I'll try to type more. ;)**

**Bubbley-chan: Sure thing. ;) I thought I've already given them personalities but I could add to it. **

**fanficlover: Thanks so much! :) I'll try :P thought I'm really psyched you're psyched!**

**Thanks also to emotionalpoemgirl and ninjastar954 for reviewing! :D**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The next day at school, the weirdest thing happened to me.

Well, weird for me at least.

We were on the subject before lunch already when I realized I caught some cold.

It was weird because we don't get sick. _Ever._

We've never had the fever, colds, diseases or any virus. We've never even coughed for real, just always sarcastically. (heh heh) I don't even know how it feels like to be really sick with the wheezing and the sneezing and the dripping snot coming out of your nose. (Ew.)

We were genetically engineered to be _perfect_. As perfect as they wanted us to be.

Strong, smart (in everything else but school stuff. I know. Sucks to be us, huh?) and skilled.

Our tests were based on our strength, stamina and agility and they didn't want any complications to disrupt their tests due to a little cold. It couldn't be a factor.

So I found it weird when I felt the need to sniff, like I suddenly had a drippy nose.

We were doing a practice test for a quiz tomorrow and I continued to write in my messy scrawl, trying not to be bothered.

Though I couldn't help but be hyper-aware about it because I've never felt something like this before (except when I cried). I felt it trickle down my nose again and as unhygienic as it sounds, I wiped it with the back of my hand in annoyance.

But when I put my hand down on the table, I noticed liquid scarlet was smeared on it. Then I continued to feel the trickle on my upper lip.

What the-.

My nose was bleeding.

It was _bleeding_.

How weird_er_… I've never had my nose bleed _randomly._ It usually bled because someone punched my nose into my skull.

I stared at the blood on my hand for a moment before realizing that I should, I dunno, _tell the teacher._

I signed my paper that was half-filled with answers and stood up, holding my nose. I could feel some of my friend's eyes on my back as I walked to the teacher.

"May I please be excused to the lavatory?" I asked sounding strange with my blood-clogged nose. It's funny. Maximum Ride and manners? What has this world come to!

But that was the only way they'd allow you to go 'cause they're all about etiquette and manners here and they'll only allow you if you say 'may', not 'can'. Stupid school…*

"Yes, you may." Mr. Green said, probably thinking I just needed to blow my nose.

I walked swiftly to the door and once I got to the hall I ran to the nearest girl's bathroom.

I've had countless number of nosebleeds so I knew exactly what to do.

You had to pinch the bridge of your nose and hold an ice pack to it to stop the flow and you shouldn't tilt your head back to avoid swallowing the blood.**

Due to my limited resources I settled to washing all the blood and waiting for it to stop. It continued to ooze and I just leaned over the sink, watching the blood and water mix and go down the drain.

About a gazillion pieces of tissue and a tiny blood stain on my necktie later, my nose finally stopped bleeding. I wiped my hands and nose on a paper towel and cleaned the rest of the mess on the sink. I realized it was already lunch time when I heard chatter in the halls and left the bathroom quickly before the usual parade of girls crowded in here to retouch their make-up or do whatever they do in here that's so important.

Trust me, you do not want to experience it. Izzy and I would know.

I made my way to the cafeteria in time to see Mitzi standing at the end of the lunch line alone, waiting for her turn.

I walked towards her and smiled, before picking up a lunch try and standing behind her.

"Hey, where'd you go?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My nose bled."

"Was the practice too hard for you? Number sixteen was pretty tricky but the tre-"

"Not that kind of nosebleed!" I exclaimed, chuckling a little. "My nose really bled."

"Oh. Haha. My bad." She stuck her tongue out and turned around to face the line again. Thank God Mitzi isn't the nosey type.

"Where's Izzy?" I asked because I suddenly realized that Mitzi was _alone_. I usually saw the 2 together.

"Oh, Lizette over there," her eyes darted across the lunch room to where Justin's group sat. I immediately saw Izzy sitting right beside Mason, smiling at something he said. "sitting with her Romeo." She snorted.

"Who? Mason?" I asked, taken aback.

She faced me. "No Cam, she's over there sitting right beside Mason because she's so madly in love with Justin." She said sarcastically. "Of course Mason!"

"They're…_together? Already?_" I asked with my eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, I know. She asked just before the bell rang if she could sit with him. I couldn't say no." She shrugged and turned around. We were finally close enough to start putting food on our trays.

"Isn't that a little bit too fast?" I asked, skeptical. I must admit, I was a little more protective over Izzy out of all my 'human' friends. She's just so…fragile to me I don't want her to get hurt or anything.

"That's exactly what I was thinking," She said and picked up a pudding cup. "but I'm not going to be a bitch about it or anything, you know?"

We started walking to our usual table which was empty. I wondered where the boys were for a moment before Mitzi spoke again.

"And this isn't even the first time!" She exclaimed.

I raised my eyebrows. _"It isn't?"_ I was appalled.

"Nu-uh." She shook her head, looking disappointed.

"Is she…normally like that? Like, does she have a lot of crushes and dates and stuff?" I asked, suddenly curious.

"Uh, hell yeah." She said in a 'duh' tone. "She's not a flirt or anything but when like, the opportunity strikes, she gets all boy-crazy. That hot mess…" She sighed sadly.

I started to turn my head in a different direction when I thought she was done talking but suddenly her voice broke, sounding so un-Mitzi like. I turned to her again and conflict was evident on her face. In the back of my head I was wondering if I looked like that whenever I was arguing with the Voice but my worry for Mitzi overpowered those thoughts.

"And you know it really sucks when you can't even persuade her to take things slow and she never listens to me about these things and I feel so _helpless_. I'm her best friend – _were_ her best friends and we can't even help her!" She didn't raise her voice but you could definitely hear the panic and concern there. I stared at Mitzi while eating my fries and she really got me thinking.

Despite Mitzi's composure and attitude, there was something else, something deep within her that not a lot of people see.

I realized that Mitzi really is a good friend.

She was really strange to me. Mitzi was sarcastic, bitchy, mean, arrogant and self-centered but she was also caring, funny, protective, strong and deep. Characteristics that contradicted each other and yet all seem to make up Mitzi.

Boy was I wrong about my friends. I knew it was wrong to stereotype but when Zach first introduced me to his friends I immediately thought Mitzi was one of those superficial airheads and I took Izzy as a perky innocent school girl with virgin thoughts.

With this discovery, I suddenly felt like I wanted to know more. Know more about them, my human friends who I never really ask questions about.

I didn't know how many siblings Zach has or how Mitzi and Bris first met and became friends or how many boyfriends Izzy's had. I wanted to know more because I somehow find their lives and experiences interesting (I mean, I could probably learn more about how to deal with boy problems from Izzy. Haha!) and I felt guilty for being so ignorant for so long.

I mean, did I look like a people person?

To cheer Mitzi up, I said, "If it helps any, we could always be the ones to threaten to kill the guy if he ever hurts her." And I got the reaction I was going for as she laughed an airy laugh.

"You know Cam, you never struck me as the killing type." She had stopped laughing and was shaking her head.

I but almost exploded with shock and laughter and quickly changed my chuckle to a cough (another example of the fake cough) as to not hurt her feelings. And maybe also so it wouldn't seem weird if I denied that.

"So how many guys has Izzy had?" I asked lightly to change the topic and to stay on the same topic at the same time. I admit, this was some juicy stuff right here.

"I don't even know!" She cried. "You probably though she was all feeble and Little Miss Church girl, huh?" She raised an eyebrow at me. I couldn't help but laugh. It was like she read my mind. (And you seriously don't wanna know how that feels. I would know.)

Then she started to laugh too and for a moment I thought from someone else's point of view we probably looked insane. But I didn't care.

"Well, how 'bout you?" I asked suggestively when we stopped laughing, wiggling my eyebrows. Hopefully this wasn't something she would get offended about.

"None." She said curtly, turning back to her lunch, picking at her macaroni salad.

Did I hear right? _None?_ I felt like my eyebrows shot to my hairline.

And she wasn't even kidding. No 'Got ya!' or 'I was only kidding!' after that single word. She continued to stare down at her lunch.

"_Why?_" I couldn't help but ask, because Mitzi really is beautiful. Mitzi with her bright blue eyes that were closer to silver and her long chocolate brown hair that flowed in perfect waves down her back. (I don't think I could ever get my hair to do that.) She wasn't tall like Izzy and I were but she was curvier in _those_ departments. She also had other traits that guys would like. (I think? I'm not a guy…)

I'm sure there's somebody out there for her.

"What do you mean why?" she asked, still not looking up.

"You've never dated? _At all?_" I know I seemed redundant but I was just so surprised.

"Guys have asked me out and all but…I just don't see myself as available…" her voice trailed off.

We sat in silence for a moment, replaying her words in my head when I saw her head suddenly snap to the right. Her eyes flashed across the cafeteria swiftly for a second before coming back to stare at her food.

I didn't miss that glance and discreetly followed her line of sight…

…to see that she looked directly at Fang's table.

At first I thought, _'Oh no, she did not just eye ma man.'_ And felt anger, but it quickly turned to embarrassment when my eyes skimmed past Fang's table to the cafeteria's double doors to see:

not any of our other boy classmates

not any of Fang's friends

not Iggy nor Zach

but Bris Benward, with his light brown hair and all his glory, as he high-fived someone entering the cafeteria and smiling the whole way to the lunch line.

I didn't know how Mitzi knew Bris entered the cafeteria at that exact moment. Maybe she had a Bris Radar, just like I had a Flock Radar.

I've only been going to school for almost 6 months now and a few months back at Anne's house but I wasn't stupid.

I knew enough to understand Mitzi words and I knew enough to know what that glance meant.

Mitzi had a crush on Bris.

_Mitzi liked Bris._

I wasn't as surprised as I thought I would be, now that I understood my friends better. That, and the fact that Mitzi and Bris were friends ever since they were kids.

With this newfound knowledge, I looked down at my lap and tried to hide the smile that threatened to burst into a full-fledged grin.

"Ron, Mitzi." Bris said, talking a seat next to the later with a huge smile still on his face.

Mitzi smiled back at him, teeth and all and looking at the 2 of them, I couldn't believe I didn't notice this before.

If it were possible, there should be a gigantic sign with blinking lights pointing at Mitzi. There should also be cutout hearts on her eyes.

The fact that I did see Mitzi's googley eyes before just goes to show how oblivious I am about this love crap.

Lunch today was interesting.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

After school, after I climbed tiredly up the stairs into my room and plopped on my very comfortable bed to take a nap, I received a text from my mom asking me to send out last minute invitations to some CSM party next Saturday.

'_Great timing, mother'_, I thought sourly but got up anyway. Her favors were annoying and sometimes even unfair but I could never say no to my mom.

I went (lazily) to my mom's room 4 halls down and retrieved the last 6 invitations from her desk drawer, following her instructions. I then went back to my room and changed into skinny jeans, a plain t-shirt and my worn out boots, not forgetting to tuck both my cell phones into my back pockets.

Yeah, I've been carrying around the stupid extra phone Jeb gave me because as much as I wanted to piss him off and throw it down the Mariana Trench for the fun of it, I just _know_ his comment was going to bite me in the ass if I brushed it aside.

Almost everything Jeb says is enough to make your blood run cold.

I also grabbed my wallet, the invitations and my leather jacket that was slung on the couch, slipped it on, before heading for the stairs.

When I passed by the living room before going to the garage, I saw Nudge and Ella watching some TV. I walked backwards and stopped near them, asking where everyone else was.

"Oh, Fang's in his room. Iggy and Gazzy are doing 'nothing' again. And Angel's practicing her ballet, I think." Nudge answered, before turning back to the show.

"Oh, okay. When Iggy's done doing 'nothing' could you tell him to start dinner, but wait for me, alright?" I asked.

"Sure, sure…" Ella waved her hand, but didn't turn to face me. Whatever that show is, it must be _very_ interesting.

I shrugged and strode to the garage, grabbed my keys from the hook before entering my car, and drove one-handedly (Please stop. I know you're staring at me with dread.) while looking at the 1st invitation's address with the other.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

'_Five down, one more to go.'_ I thought tiredly, bringing the gear to my car up a notch to pick up speed. (I know; my car's manual. It sucks majorly but I learned to deal.)

I seized the last invitation from the passenger's seat to take a look at the address but when my eyes took a glimpse of the name printed on the envelope, it almost made me freeze and stop right there in the middle of the road.

I flinched and dropped it back on the seat like it was toxic and stared at the name with a look of disgust.

_Jeb Batchelder_

Okay, I don't care if my mom trusted the guy, I could never trust him. Something about him was just so unnerving and I was anxious that I actually had to go to his house to give the invitation.

'_Suck it up, Max. It's just Jeb.'_ I told myself and took a deep breath to calm myself down.

My plan was to stuff it in his mail box, ring the doorbell and get the heck out of there.

It was that simple.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I take back what I just said.

When I parked my car against the curb and got out, I immediately took in the sight of Jeb's home.

It was an average looking house, painted all white. His front lawn was neatly trimmed and a stone path wove its way from the front door to the sidewalk, in between 2 concrete columns where I was standing right now. Fences lined the sides of his house and a cement wall was put up around the front of his lawn.

It was perfect. _Too_ perfect, but that's Jeb for ya.

I grasped the white gate that separated me from the stone path, looking left and right for the mail box.

I spotted the doorbell on one of the 2 stubby white columns, but no main box.

Shit.

Okay, Plan B: Doorbell like crazy, shove the invitation into Jeb's face and hop in my car before he could even get a word out.

I rang the doorbell twice and waited. No one answered.

With less patience this time, I pressed it 5 times and waited again on the sidewalk for a few minutes.

And still no one answered.

Okay, he asked for it.

I rang the doorbell continuously now, pressing my finger against the button every second.

At first I was really into it, ringing his doorbell like a maniac, probably with a crazed expression on my face, but then after a few seconds I just felt _stupid_.

It was obvious no one was going to answer.

'_Well, crap.'_, I thought.

Umm…Plan C: Fly over the gate, knock on the door like crazy, shove the invitation into Jeb's face and hop in my car before he could even – oh, forget it!

I could take a hint, fate. If you wanted me to talk to Jeb, you could've just said so!

Ugh. I hated it when it did that…

Whatever. If fate wanted me to talk to Jeb, I might as well make the most out of it.

Hmm…make the most out of it…

Maybe I could even get some answers from him…

Psh! Who was I kidding? Like Jeb would just magically give me all the answers I needed because he was such a good person who rescued stray dogs in his spare time.

Okay, quit arguing with yourself Max and just get on with it!

I went a few steps back to gain momentum and took a running start, jumping in the air as high as I could and whipping out my wings at the last second, flipping in the air. I used my wings to help me glide from a moment before tucking them in, landing lightly on front of his doorstep, hopefully looking graceful in the process.

Don't worry; I made sure no one was looking.

I composed myself before knocking on the door, slightly amused with myself for still being polite.

'_Jeb, no one was answering the gate and my mom told me to make sure you got this so here. I was also wondering if you-'_

Suddenly, the door flew open and I was surprised to see, not Jeb, but a woman…

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

***my school's like this. :| How lovely, right?**

****my mom's a nurse :D I learned the 'you shouldn't tip your head back to keep from swallowing the blood' and the 'pinch the bridge of your nose' thing from her. :P**

**Okay, so this isn't much but I did what I could. :)**

**The first part all filler; it's just for all the people who were wondering what happened to Izzy. Bet you didn't see that coming. I also wanted to show you guys another side of Mitzi because even if they're just minor characters, I couldn't help but give them personalities. :D Like, with Max and the flock, they're already their own characters but I just love it when you can make people from scratch. ;)**

**And the second part's for you to find out. :P The next chapter has a little drama.**

**I hope this didn't seem mediocre. :|**

**Peace out and review, review, review! :D**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	16. Twisted

**OMG. :O Long apology short: I just started school so I'm still getting used to the schedule and yeah, I already have tons of homework. :(**

**I'm not depressed from my initial problem but just a little bit sad 'cause one of my best friends is moving to some international school just 2 weeks into school. I mean, WTH… :'( Why did you go to our school when you're just going to transfer! It just makes goodbyes more sad…**

**Jeez. Almost 2 weeks without updating. I really felt bad so I made this chapter extra, **_**extra **_**long. ;) I hope you appreciate it.**

**Thank you Bubbley-chan, SharpestSatire, the person who keeps using dif and fireflies371 for reviewing and for being so patient. ;) Also, thank you fanficlover for reviewing twice and for being not-so-patient. Haha! Your first review was hilarious and the second one encouraged me more to write faster. :D Not that I wasn't already working on this, her review kind of scared me (I was scared and flattered at the same time :|) so I worked even faster. :P **

**I worked on this the day after school and wouldn't stop till I finished so after 6 hours of non-stop writing, here's chapter 16! Enjoy. ;)**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"_Who the hell are you?" _the woman said impolitely, raising an eyebrow.

She's only spoken 5 words and I already didn't like her.

I stared back defiantly and scrutinized her up and down, taking in her whole stance.

Rudy over here (I decided to give her a nickname) had dark brown eyes behind black rimmed glasses. Her hair was pinned neatly at the back of her head into a bun with no cowlicks or wisps out of place. She was clad in an uncomfortable looking blouse, a skirt than grew thinner towards her knee (I was amused she was still able to walk in them) and heels that made me wince just by looking at them.

When my gaze landed back to her face, I noticed that she was doing the same thing.

"I need to speak with Jeb." I said curtly, no hellos whatsoever. If she was being rude, then 2 can play at that game. "It's important that I give this invitation to him." I told her, twirling the envelope in my fingers.

"H-how did you get over the gate? Who the _hell_ are _you_?" She questioned again.

I ignored her them and repeated, "I said, it's important that I give this invitation to him."

Hopefully she'll learn in a few seconds that I don't answer to _anybody_.

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Batchelder's very busy right now. I could give it to him for you, if you'd like?" She talked to me like a little kid, like I couldn't comprehend her words.

Well I guess I _did_ look like a kid to her.

… _waste my time… the fuck…how did she get over the gate…report to police…some brat…invitation my ass…_

Her eyes were scrunched up, I guess trying to look intimidating but those never worked for me.

Who does this_ girl _think she is anyway? And what was she doing in Jeb's house?

Was she a colleague? Some other scientist working under him? Or maybe a relative… An old friend perhaps?

I shook my head. With Jeb, you never knew…

"That would be great." I said icily, the fakeness dripping from my voice. I can already imagine her throwing the invitation once I was out of sight.

Oh wells. I couldn't say I didn't try.

The envelope was already in her hands when a deep voice echoed throughout the entrance hall of the house.

"Jenny? Jenny! Who's there?"

Outside, my body was chill; looking like I didn't give a care in the world but on the inside I like, 'VBJIO[GIRE0BGEHI CRAP VNJSOBSO OMG IHR NWFP!1!'.

My gaze switched from Snooty Rudy to Jeb's as he rounded the corner. I'm not even going to say I was upset, because I was expecting this, right?

Jeb looked over at Rudy, questions in his eyes, then at me, barely glancing at me for half a second. Then back to Rudy then finally back to me, his eyes wide with shock.

And finally he gets it; let's give the man a prize!

He didn't say anything for a few seconds, the shock overwhelming his puny brain as he's trying to process what's happening, when finally he spoke up.

"_Max…_" Aaaaannd that's the only thing he can say.

"What?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"Max…i-is it really you? Are you really here?" He asked, his voice filled with delight and hope. Jesus.

"Jeb, don't ask stupid questions. All you're gonna get is sarcasm." I told him slowly because that's just how retarded he is.

He shook his head and chuckled slightly, laughing to himself. Okay, what joke did I miss?

He turned back to Rudy and his voice held no amusement like it did earlier.

"Jenny, why didn't you tell me I had a visitor?"

"I didn't…I thought-" She stuttered, unsure of how to explain this to him. But you know, I could gladly help.

"You see Jeb, I needed to talk to you," I interrupted. At the words 'talk to you' his face lit up and I flinched inwardly. "and mom told me to give you this, but _Rudy_ over here said you were busy so I can just go…" my voice trailed off innocently and I started to walk towards the front door, pushing down the urge to smile like a maniac.

"Wait! Max, what did you want to talk about?" Jeb's voice was way too eager.

It took me a while to answer, not sure what I was going to talk to him about either. "…stuff." Then I went for innocence and pity again. "But it not important, really…"

"Wait!" Jeb screeched, his voice so loud it made me stop in my tracks.

Could he stop saying that!

Then he changed the tone of his voice and faced Rudy. "Jenny, the next time I have visitors, you have to tell me right away. You're only a _secretary_. I can fire you immediately. Understood?"

So Rudy was a _secretary_? Hmm…kinky.

Oh dammit! Stupid boys for infecting my innocent brain! Stupid freaky hormones!

Her suddenly quiet, meek-like voice snapped me back to reality. "Yes Mr. Batchelder…" she said, ducking her head.

"Max," Jeb called after me and I turned around slowly. Man, his smile put the sun to shame. "Right this way…" he said and started walking down the hall he came from.

I snatched the invitation out of her hands arrogantly and followed him with my head held high. Don't you just love situations like these?

Right before I turned the corner, I looked her over again with my eyebrow raised and dramatically flipped my hair.

Her expression made my day.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

'…_your mom? I heard she flew to Virginia for a veterinarian meeting of some sorts. Will she be back before the party? I was meaning to…'_ Jeb rambled on and on but all I was hearing was '_blah blah blah'_. I followed silently behind him and examined his house, absorbing every single detail (including exits and escape routes because I was just used to it) and to sum it all up Jeb was plain _boring_.

I was seriously freaked out but I didn't show it.

His house had a gazillion halls, even more than my current house (which is saying something). So many, than the twists and turns reminded me of the mazes they used to make us run through back at the School. A shiver ran down my spine and I hugged my arms, trying not to scream.

Everything was white even inside. We passed a bunch of doors, all of which were closed shut and loomed over us eerily, making me even more nervous.

There was something seriously wrong with Jeb.

Finally, he stopped and entered a room, pausing at the door to usher me inside.

I went on alert, expecting to see an operating room like all those times before…

Crap. I might start hyperventilating.

I took a deep breath and followed him inside to see…

…an ordinary living room.

Long couches lined the walls, directly underneath beautiful paintings I wouldn't have imagined Jeb would ever be interested in.

'_Jeez Max. Jeb may be wacko but he's still human.' _I thought to myself.

A cute coffee table was neatly placed in the middle of the couches and chairs and a TV hung over the fireplace on the other side of the room.

"Make yourself comfortable." Jeb said. He sauntered towards one of the couches and patted the seat next to him, smiling.

_He wasn't serious?_

I walked towards the other side of the room, lightly placed the envelope on the table before coming to sit on the edge of the _other_ couch. Uncomfortable physically, but the distance made me feel calmer. I heard him sigh audibly.

It was quiet for a while. Jeb expecting me to start the conversation first while I looked down at my lap.

…so what now?

What was I suppose to ask him or talk to him about? I mean, I do have questions but I can't just ask him directly, _'Who were Angel and Gazzy's parents?'_ Come on, this is _Jeb_ we're talking about.

I sighed internally. Thank you Fate, for making me look like a complete idiot!

I was slightly thankful Jeb spoke up first. "So, what was it-"

And then you know what happened?

Erasers/flyboys/m-geeks did not crash through the wall and start killing us.

Steph Adams did not run into the room and commit suicide. (That's too good too be true.)

And Iggy certainly did not burst through the door and started singing Ms. New Booty naked. (Okay, firstly, I only know the song Ms. New Booty because of the YouTube video Ms. Moogoo.* Secondly, please don't scold me for having that thought. It just came to me, alright?)

To end the suspense, Jeb just got a phone call.

He exhaled sharply and said, "Hold on Max, this would take just _one_ second."

He slightly turned his body and whipped out his cell phone, the exact same model of the phone he gave me. I didn't understand what he was saying to the caller, and I didn't care enough to listen in, but I could barely hear his harsh, rushed voice. It sounded like he was trying to end the call, but he just kept continuing to argue.

You know Jeb, if you wanted to end a call, just _shut the damn phone_.

I waited.

And waited and waited, the seconds ticking by.

I was already starting to forget the main reason why I was here because I was just getting _annoyed_.

I didn't have all day you know!

I stared at Jeb coldly, hoping my glare could freeze him up in an ice block and give him frostbite.

And then you know what else happened?

Jeb asked me to _wait_ for him.

While I continually glared at him, imagining different scenarios of him in pain in my head, he suddenly covered the bottom part of his phone and whispered, "I'm so sorry Max, but could you please wait a while. This is a really important phone call I have to make."

Without waiting for my answer, he left the room swiftly, shutting the door quietly behind him.

I closed my eyes tightly and screamed through clenched teeth.

FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, _WHAT. THE. HECK. AM. I. DOING._

Unbelievable.

_Un-frikin'-believable!_

I was so mad at myself.

I couldn't believe I drove all the way to Jeb's house to send an invitation when he doesn't need to be invited in the first place!

I couldn't believe I actually entertained the thought of getting answers from Jeb, the spawn of Satan himself!

I couldn't believe I put up with that bitch of a secretary and actually felt _pleased_ with myself when Jeb scolded her!

I couldn't believe I _wanted_ information from Jeb!

And I can't believe why _I'm still here!_

I stood up quickly, walked around the room to the door and stormed down the halls, ready to explode with rage.

I couldn't think properly; the raw anger was coursing through my veins and if Jeb had any other servants or butlers that came in my way I would've ripped their heads off easily.

_Left. Another left._

Almost out Max. Get out of this hellhole and forget anything happened.

I promised myself I would never go back here.

_Right. Left._

About 3 more turns…

My long legs made me take lesser strides than necessary.

As I was walking down the hall looking straight ahead, a tiny voice whispered the word _'Right' _in my head.

The voice wasn't the Voice, so it was probably my conscience talking or something completely different.

Please God, let it just be my conscience.

I wasn't supposed to turn right. I was supposed to make a left and _then_ a right.

Despite knowing, my eyes flashed to my right briefly and then I noticed a little up ahead was a door.

Okay Conscience. What do you want me to do about it?

I frowned, confused by what I thought I heard when I noticed that the door was slightly _open._

This door was left open.

All the anger drained from my body and was replaced with curiosity.

A door was _open_.

I once heard this saying about an open door. Something about possibilities or whatever.

Could this be it?

I looked down the hall, whipping my head right then left then right again.

I was all alone.

As quietly as I could (which was _very_ quiet), I pushed the door back slightly with my fingers and peered inside.

I didn't know what to expect. I was running all on curiosity now.

I felt no fear, no anger from before. Nothing.

It took me a second to realize what this room was, and finding out it was empty, I stepped inside, the sole of my boots sinking into plush carpet.

This was Jeb's study.

It was amazing. All 4 walls, from floor to ceiling, were rows upon rows of different books, textbooks, novels and notebooks, both old and new.

I ran my fingers on some of the books spines, looking at the titles.

There were science fiction books, spiral notebooks with bent wires, almanacs, textbooks on ornithology and histology-.

I gasped and pulled back my fingers from the shelf in a panic, taking steps backwards.

_Deep breaths Max_.

I continued to walk away from the shelves when my lower back hit something hard. I turned around quickly and found that I was now facing Jeb's desk.

Much safer…

I walked around the front to get to his seat and faced the 2 computers monitors propped on the desk.

I stared at the screens…and stared some more and ALMOST FRICKIN' FELL OUT OF MY CHAIR WHEN A STUPID VOICE SUDDENLY POPS INTO MY HEAD!

'_Find the answers. Go to measures you never thought you'd reach for. It will surprise you.'_

After I caught myself and steadied my breathing, I realized it wasn't the Voice, nor my Conscience or even me just talking inside my head. It was a flashback.

_Find the answers…_

And then suddenly, for the second time today, another weird thing happened.

In the next second it was like I was _possessed_ or something. Not in the creepy kind of way but like my mind went on autopilot and my whole body was being controlled by someone else.

Okay, that _is_ creepy.

I didn't know how to handle the situation.

I watched as my hands flew to the system units of the computers, pressing buttons to start them. When both the monitors came to life, my fingers hovered over the right keyboard for a second before typing hastily, then switched to the left and typed something else just as fast.

I waited for about 5 seconds for the desktops to load and another couple of seconds for the icons to appear.

What the hell was happening?

And then as soon as my palm closed around the mouse, I felt like my eyes glazed over.

I couldn't even keep up with my hands. It was a flurry of clicks, the sound echoing inside my head. I was barely able to process that I was opening files, dragging some of them to this folder and that folder and copying and pasting them.

I then turned to the other computer and opened a program, downloading something.

What was I doing?

I started to click some more stuff on the program and without taking my eyes of the monitor, I reached into Jeb's lower right drawer with one hand and pulled something out.

What the-?

My fingers wrapped around thick cords.

Okaaay…

I plugged them into one of the system units and then – get this – I grabbed for the phone Jeb gave me from my back pocket and _plugged_ it onto the other side of the cord.

Then I was back to clicking and typing and transferring files.

It was the craziest thing.

My head would barely move; just my eyes shifting left and right to the monitors. I didn't even need to look down at my fingers; I was typing like a pro.

A pro that drank 8 cups of coffee or something.

Left. Right. Click. Type. Type. Drag. Click. Left. Drag. Click. Type.

I only lifted my hand from the keyboard trice, which slowed me down some, because wisps of my hair were getting in my face.

_Note to self: Cut hair soon._

Within a few _seconds_ I was able to figure out encrypted files, broke down some firewalls and copied codes onto this box.

Deep inside, I was scared, trying to force my body to _stopstopSTOP! _but at the same time, I was also amazed. I couldn't stop myself; remember: I wasn't thinking and I wasn't in control of my body at the moment.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

3 minutes.

It took me 3 minutes to do all this mambo jambo.

I didn't know what the _hell_ I did but I knew it was almost over when my body started closing the windows to files and I typed in the last few codes into the box. I pressed 4 buttons on the keyboard and the box filled with letters and numbers started to scroll down on its own swiftly.

…what's happenin'?

The window closed on it's own when it was finished and, just as fast as I opened the computers, I unplugged my phone from the cord, hid the cord in the drawer where I found it, exited all the windows and clicked another bunch of stuff I didn't get before shutting them both down.

When I clicked the buttons on the system units, I felt a punch to my gut, gasping loudly and gulping sweet air. I leaned back on the chair, exhausted.

Finally, I knew I was back in my body. _Finally_.

Despite the tiredness I felt, my brain was still functioning properly and I knew that I had to _get the heck out of here!_

The curiosity was fading and was now turning into panic.

I stood up, shoved my phone into my back pocket and exited the room without a trace.

I was silently trying to close the door when a voice, a voice I did _not_ want to hear at the moment, broke the silence of the hall and scared the hell outta me.

"Hi." Rudy greeted me with fake enthusiasm. "I'm sorry but I don't think you're allowed in there." She said and it took all my strength not to yank off her annoying smile off her face.

It might come as a surprise to you but I really don't like to be mean _all_ the time. I do what I can to protect the flock, my family and I but I won't beat up the next ditz I see because she stole her best friend's boyfriend.

_Puh-lease_.

I have better things to do.

So right now, I didn't want to piss her off. I just wanted to get out of here.

I shoved past her without saying anything, talking long strides.

She called after me, threatened to tell 'Mr. Batchelder'.

Like he'll believe her anyways.

I felt relieved and free once I flew over the white gates and landed perfectly on the sidewalk.

Oh God, that was so dangerous I felt like a ninja spy. I so deserve an award for that.

I learned against my car and closed my eyes, exhaling the breath I didn't know I was holding.

Once I got in the car, I flexed my fingers and turned on the ignition. I turned on the stereo too, and played a random rock song from my iPod which was plugged in.

The deafening clash of electric guitar and drums filled my ear, helping me clear my head.

I didn't want to think about anything right now. Not the incident that just happened. Not about my stupidity of even coming here. I just wanted to get home.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I entered the kitchen, crankily scratching the back of my head. Stupid long trip back home…

As always, the smell of something extremely delicious hit my nose immediately that I felt my mouth start to water.

Yum. Iggy's cooking.

When I exited the kitchen to get to the dining area, I was slightly confused to see only Nudge, Ella and Fang sitting at the dining table, eating.

"Hey guys…" I said, shrugging off my jacket and throwing it on the nearest vacant chair.

"Hey Max!" Ella greeted and Nudge smiled with her mouth full. Nudge will be Nudge.

I took a seat next to Fang and kissed him lightly on the cheek before starting to dump mounds of food onto my plate.

Fang raised an eyebrow. "Where did you go?"

"Oh, I had to deliver some invitations for mom…" I said. At least it wasn't a _total_ lie…

He shrugged and went back to his food.

"Umm…where's Gazzy, Angel and Iggy?" I voiced my thoughts.

"Oh. They ate ahead. They all needed to do some school stuff." Nudge said, her utensils scraping loudly against the plate.

"Ate ahead? I told Iggy to wait for me." I said, frowning.

At least my expectations weren't that high anymore.

It was sad, really, that we barely ate together as a family anymore. Sure, we talked to each other and still joked around and had fun but it wasn't like before, when we were on the run and we were all eat around a campfire in the woods, picking off the last bits on the bones of whatever we could find.

We were dirty, and tired, and miserable, but we stuck together and made the most out of it.

Now? I wasn't so sure. Everyone was always off doing their own thing.

Sighing quietly to myself, I tried not to take it to heart and shrugged it off, continued to stuff my face. But despite trying not to care, I had this bad feeling in the pit of my stomach and it scared me more because I didn't understand it.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I knew it was late but I couldn't help it.

I decided on a whim that I should explain to Jeb why I left in such a hurry.

No, I was not being nice to him because morals suddenly shined upon me and made me a better person. I texted him because I needed to gain his trust.

I can imagine all of you going, 'Whuuuuutt?' with raised eyebrows (or maybe even falling off your chairs) but to put it simply, there's no use in trying to fight him.

I hate him, yes, but he's following wherever the flock's going and he's determined to stick around. I don't have to get along with him and I can't stand him but I should at least show him that I was 'okay' with him so that whenever I see him he wouldn't always act so caring and loving and _yuck_.

I've observed that the more you rebel, the more they'll care. (Hey! That rhymes!)

If I acted like I was 'okay' with him, maybe he would tone down the father act a little.

I typed up a short but simple explanation as to why I left without saying goodbye on my cell phone, sounding as un-Max like as possible (which was _very _difficult). I clicked 'Send' in a hurry so I couldn't change my mind and threw my phone down on my bed afterwards.

Ugh. I had so much shit to deal with…

I lied back down on my bed in a huff, some of my hair tickling my face. I swatted it away in annoyance and took a deep breath, my eyes drooping at how cool and comfortable the atmosphere was.

I wish I could stay in this moment for a long while…

I drifted off, I knew I did, only to come bolting upright at the slightest vibration against my leg. I blinked a couple of times, clearing my vision before I spotted that it was coming from _both_ my phones. Huh…

At the back of my head I remembered I put the phone Jeb gave me on silent mode because I didn't know how to change the ugly ringtone. I smiled and picked them up.

At first I looked at my phone and the read the reply Jeb sent. He told me it was alright and that if ever I needed to talk to him, I could just ring him. I cringed.

Then I looked at the Jeb phone (it takes to long to say 'the phone Jeb gave me') and it read the exact same thing I sent to him about 2 minutes ago.

Wait, _what?_

I was confused out of my mind.

Then the Jeb phone vibrated again and when I opened the message it was an e-mail from some guy named Bill Mathis about some trip to China addressed to Jeb Batchelder.

What the hell…

You could say it's cliché that comprehension dawned on me at the exact same moment I was just wondering what this all was, but everything immediately clicked into place, especially since _I_ was the one who did it.

I was so confused, and panick-y and shocked.

This is _way_ too freaky, even for me.

How did-? What the-? I just-? I can't-? The _what?_

My eyebrows knit together.

This was impossible. I was a lot of things, but I couldn't have…

I closed my eyes and groaned softly.

I didn't know how or why, but somehow I was able to patch everything Jeb received, from e-mails to text messages, calls, maybe even Facebook, Myspace and AIM notifications, into the phone he gave me.

'_Find the answers. Go to measures you never thought you'd reach for. It will surprise you.'_

So _that's_ what that meant?

Were these going help me answer my questions?

I never thought I'd go to Jeb for answers and I never, _ever_ thought I could do what I did. And yes, I surprised myself.

Holy crap.

I didn't know if I should feel guilty or ecstatic, but the only thought in my head was that, for the first time ever, I was able to use the gift Jeb gave me against him.

Oh my God.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I woke up the next day with the biggest grin on my face.

Why, you ask?

BECAUSE MAH MAMA'S COMIN' HOME TODAY!

I wasn't going to think about anything else but her arrival so I shoved the confusing thoughts to the back of my head and smiling forcefully.

I quickly took a bath and dressed into some skinny jeans, a tank top and slipped on a hoodie, before stepping into some chucks. I was itching to braid my hair or even tie it in a ponytail but resisted and walked to the door.

It was about 9am in the morning and I already knew that everybody in the house was already up.

I made my way downstairs and walked all the way to the kitchen to see Gazzy, Fang, Angel and Total (with Akila and Magnolia eating from bowls on the floor) sitting around the kitchen island, scarfing down bacon, pancakes, eggs and waffles.

"Mornin' Max!" Gazzy greeted and I smiled and ruffled his blonde head.

Iggy was just finishing another set of cooked bacon, tossing it onto the pile and starting over again.

"Morning." I said. They all greeted back, some tiredly and other sounding like they were choking.

I ate fast, able to reach my supposed minimum calorie intake in 9 minutes (YESSS! New record!) and washed my plate afterwards.

"I gotta go," I said to them, grabbing my keys and my wallet from the counter, "I'll pick up Ella and Nudge on the way there. Fang, you're in charge till I get back." I looked at him and he nodded. I smiled.

"I'll be home soon!" I said over my shoulder and went to the garage, hopped into my car and drove towards Jenier.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Oh. My. Lord._

I stared past the chain-linked fence with wide eyes, feeling both shocked and disgusted at the same time.

There Nudge was, cheering her heart out with all her peppiness, complete with tiny shorts, high pigtailed hair and gigantic blue and silver pompoms in the middle of their school's field.

Yes, Nudge is a cheer dancer.

Right now I was amazed at how good she looked. She mimicked the actions perfectly alongside her other cheermates or whatever they're called and their actions were pretty fast and hard, considering they're all just grade school.

She was very flexible too (Well, we all were. How do you think we do stunts and flips in mid-air?). I watched, impressed, as she did a cartwheel and then a backflip expertly off to the side, smiling with her perfect white teeth the whole time.

I was thinking about Nudge and her dancing skills when in the next second I suddenly felt the need to hurl and I bent over, my hands on my knees and literally puked my hearty breakfast out.

Okay, _ew._

I have _no_ idea why it happened, it just did.

I'm not going to go into the nasty details so I'll start from the part where I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and spat the taste out of my mouth.

_So gross…_

Why the heck did I just vomit? I couldn't think of anything that could've made me do so. The only thing that popped into my head was either I ate my breakfast too fast or the peppiness was too much for me.

I think I'll go with the latter, even if I always picked up Nudge from her practices in the past and have gotten used to it by now.

I walked towards Nudge and called to her, telling her we needed to go.

When she spotted me, she smiled and waved. I could read her lips as she said goodbye to her 'cheermates', picked up her bag and stuffed her pompoms into them before jogging towards me.

To set the record straight: I'm totally against cheer dancing and any other stuff that relates to degrading the female population.

For all you spirit squad people out there, don't get mad at me. I'm just saying my opinion.

I hated the fact that Nudge wanted to join something like _this, _but I kept quiet about it anyway because this was what she wanted and she was actually very happy and good at it.

When she finally reached me, she tackled me into a bone-crushing hug and I laughed, hugging her back.

If you were wondering how she hid her wings so well, especially in such small clothes, it's because we've been doing it for such a long time, we've got it all but down.

It was uncomfortable and painful, and sometimes you would even get cramps from how tightly folded it is against your spine, but we got used to it and now it almost looks like nothing's there.

We then fetched Ella from her debate meeting and when we were all set to go, we all piled into the car and drove to the airport.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"…met my idol! It was such a dream, Max. It was _so_ much fun there." My mom ranted on about her adventures in Virginia, beating the Nudge Channel for the first time ever.

"That's great mom. I'm so happy you had a wonderful time." Ella said from the back and Nudge started asking questions about the different animals they observed and treated.

I was so happy mom was back; I missed her so much!

I also decided that I would keep Gazzy's little situation and the insane school-night party where I almost killed someone between me and the flock. My mom didn't need to know…

All the way back home we talked about her trip and she mentioned that she might be invited to more of those kinds of things in the future.

Oh. Well, if it made her happy then I guess I was okay with that…

When we got back home, the rest of the flock were just as excited as we were and started listening to mom's stories, leading her to the living room. Iggy even baked brownies for her homecoming and they trailed off, leaving me alone in the kitchen.

I went to the fridge and poured myself a glass of orange juice, leaning back on the cold door while chugging it down. My head whipped to the right, just to see if they cleaned up the kitchen after breakfast and swiped my hair out of my eyes again.

Okay, that's it.

I put down the glass and my eyes drifted to the left, eyeing the kitchen scissors.

I was already here anyway.

I scooted closer to the knife holder and picked up the scissors, tapping the sharp tip to my chin while think of the length I was going to cut.

My long wavy blondish-brown hair reached until my lower back, almost to my butt.

Man, it was too _long_ already.

I decided to chop off 6 inches and poised the opened scissors against a clump of hair I was holding when I heard my sister scream.

"MAX!" She screeched, dropping the brownie knife in the process.

Her outburst made my hand jerked, nearly beheading myself. I just missed my neck by a few millimeters and faced Ella, trying to calm my heart from trying to jump out of my rib cage.

"ELLA! _Don't. Frickin'. DO THAT!_ You almost made me chop my head off!" I yelled back.

"I'm sorry!" She said, picking up the knife that fell, "But what the hell are _you_ doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm giving myself a haircut." I stared pointedly at her.

Her jaw dropped and her eyes grew to the size of watermelons.

"No, no, _NO!_ Max, what are you _doing?_"

"_I said_, I'm gi-"

"SHH! I don't even want to hear it. Come on." She walked towards me and took my wrist, leading me to the hall.

"What are you doing? Where you-" I questioned but was cut off by her reply.

"I'm taking you to the salon and you're getting a makeover, Max. You've been avoiding this for too long and it's about time you got one." She said in all seriousness.

_HOLY [insert swear word of your choice here.]!_

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

***Well my cousins and I found that video funny. :P You should check it out. ;)**

**That was freakin' long… O_O **

**I'm sorry if Max was so cussing in the start; I was just trying to convey how much she dislikes Jeb.**

**Not concerning the story: I reread some parts of the books to absorb more of their qualities and attitudes and WHAT THE EFF HAPPENED TO ANGEL? SHE WAS SUCH A CUTIE PATOOTIE WHO LOVED MAX AND BAM! SHE'S THE BIGGEST BITCH **_**EH-VUR**_**! Just sayin'. :)**

**Also, I'm reading this parody of Twilight called Nightlight by the Harvard Lampoon (a bunch of Harvard undergraduates) and it is HI-LA-RI-OUS. I swear, my sister kept looking at me funny while I was reading 'CAUSE I'D JUST SUDDENLY BURST INTO LAUGHTER. Haha! You should check it out. It's an actual published book. ;) I wonder if they'll get sued… :|**

**Now, you should all reviewreviewREVIEW if you want me to update faster! :) Whether they're suggestions, criticisms, questions or just 'cause you want to tell me something, they encourage me and reading them always cheer me up! If I get 5, I'll review by next week. :P**

**OH YEAH! Btw, I started another fanfiction, Camp Northwoods, and I seriously need ideas so if you could just check it out and suggest stuff I would really appreciate it. ;)**

**For now, peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	17. Party?

**Wow. Just 3 weeks into school and I almost, kinda, sorta get suspended. :| Well , it's hard to explain.**

**I'm so sorry I didn't update last week; I had a lot of crap to do but enough of the excuses.**

**Thank you fireflies371, Stargazer-Look4Me and SeaSaltChocolate for reviewing. ;)**

**SharpestSatire: You didn't know what gay mean? Well, I had the same case. Sorta. :P NIGHTLIGHT IS THE BOMB! :)) :D**

**DancingSuferSoccerplayer: You just have to wait and see… (Sorry, I'm evil like that. :P) And did I have any mistakes? :O **

**addicted-2-oxygen: YAY! A reader-comeback! Thanks, and you're welcome. :) I came across it from some other person profile then remembered your username so… Have you caught up to speed?**

**Enjoy reading! **

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I'm not going to bore you will the all details of our argument about my makeover but in the end…Ella won.

Don't be surprised. I often get my way with everything but when it comes to Ella, you just _can't_ win.

_She's a frickin' debater! _

Throughout our whole verbal fight she'll interrupt your retort by saying, "Point.", raising an index finger, and will start spewing out reasons as to why I should get a makeover. And these points were _good_; I ended up looking like a lozer with nothing to say. (I wanted to break her index finger _so_ badly at the time.)

In short, she said that now that I wasn't living like a hobo, I should take what I could get and appreciate what I have. She also said that it wouldn't hurt to get one and that the makeover wasn't expensive anyway.

I was capable of defending myself from those 'points' but when she brought out the mom card…well, things went downhill from there.

It was unfair to involve mom in this, but when Ella asked mom if it was okay that I get one, mom said that I should and started encouraging me.

And you all know that I _can't_ deny my mom. She's my weakness.

So that was how I ended up resentfully driving my car with Angel, Nudge and Ella to some salon a few minutes out of town.

Ella explained that this salon was where she and mom would always go to, so she's memorized the route. She's also befriended all the hair stylists there.

Yipee.

When we arrived there, I parked my car close to the entrance and we all piled out. The salon was small and simple with its name hanging in purple script letters over the entrance. I decided that I was okay with this place.

When we entered, the first thing I noticed was that weird salon smell; I wrinkled my nose. Why did all salons smell like this anyway?

Two hair stylists greeted Ella and the receptionist got up from behind her desk and hugged her when she saw us. Well, I guess she was famous here.

"Ella! What brings you here? Are you getting another haircut?" The receptionist said, smiling brightly the whole time.

"Hey Issa, it's great to see you! No, I'm not getting a haircut this time; my friends are. Is Jerry around?" Ella said nicely, looking over Issa's shoulder to look for this 'Jerry'.

"Yes, he is! You're in luck; he just finished with his last scheduled customer for the day. So who are these 3?" Issa asked, noticing us for the first time and continuing to smile warmly.

"This is Krystal and Isabella, my best friends," Ella said, indicating to them and at the word 'best friends' they beamed, "and my sister, Cam." She pointed to me.

"Your _sister_? You have a sister? I have never seen this girl in the 9 years I've known you and your mother." Issa said, looking at me in confusion.

"Well, it's a long story." Ella said, laughing, Umm…could you please lead us to Jerry?" she continued in a friendly voice.

"Oh right! Right this way…" Issa said and headed deeper into the salon.

It was your typical salon. The whole place brightly lit and scattered everywhere with mirrors. There was a station similar to the one we saw back in New York, where they would wash your hair over a sink, and a few comfortable-looking chairs for people getting manicures and pedicures. Heading straight down were the chairs that you could raise and lower for people getting haircuts and there were a few machines here and there. I raised an eyebrow at one in particular that looked like a helmet on a stand, poised over an old lady reading a magazine.

Weird.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when someone said my sister's name enthusiastically. Turning around, I looked over and saw a tall guy with pretty boy blond spiked hair hugging my sister. He was wearing _really_ tight pants, a black polo and black leather boots. I immediately thought he was very brave for that fashion statement.

"It's good to see you too Jer!" Ella said and they started making small talk.

Oh… so this guy was Jerry…

They continued to talk for a while, while Nudge, Angel and I stood off to the side awkwardly for what felt like forever. The tips of my toes were experiencing the first signs of pins and needles when Ella finally said, "Wait! Jer, I need you to do me a favor."

"Sure, what's that?" He said instantly and smiled.

"Could you give my sister here a haircut, like right now?" She said, getting to the point right away. How straightforward of her.

"You have a _sister_?" Ha-ha.

"Jer! _Please._ We've got to work fast; we have to be home by 1!" Ella argued. _'Well who was the one making chitchat with the hair stylist?'_ I thought sarcastically. And why was Ella in such a hurry?

Jerry thought about it for a second then got all serious.

"So who am I going to beautify today?" Cue internal eye roll.

"Her." Ella said, suddenly grabbing my arm and hauling me to where they were standing.

Jerry scrutinized me with his eyes, taking in my whole appearance. I would've glared back defiantly at him and crossed my arms over my chest, but thought better of it knowing Ella would probably scold me. I also faintly wondered what I looked like to him… A mess? A catastrophe? Or maybe I just looked normal.

"So what do you want me to do with your sister? Extensions? Streaks? Layers? Bangs?" I widened my eyes in horror with each suggestion. _'Oh Ella, please just say a trim…_'

"Surprise me." She grinned. Okay, I so wanted to stake her and throw her in a fire pit right now.

"Follow me honey…" Jerry said, dragging me off by my arm to one of the chairs. _Like I had a choice… _I glared at Ella over my shoulder and they all just smiled and waved at me innocently. Those evil little witches…

Jerry sat me down on one of the chairs and put those cloth thingies over my body, tying the strings tightly around my neck. My legs were screaming to launch a spinning hook kick at him but stopped myself with all I had. _'Everything's fine Max… you're just getting a haircut._'

He began studying my profile again on the mirror, muttering to himself.

"What to do, what to do…" He thought out loud, tapping his chin. I looked back at his appearance on the mirror and after a few seconds, a light bulb practically lit above his head.

"I've got it!" he smiled and picked up a spray bottle. "Don't worry darling, you're in good hands…" he said, spraying my whole head with water. Why didn't they just wash my hair in one of those stations? I faintly wondered.

"What are you going to do to my hair?" I asked, trying to keep the panic out of my voice.

Okay, I wasn't scared of having a makeover because I was so darn stubborn and tomboy to have one and was scared to actually look like a girl. (If you didn't realize, I was being sarcastic.) It was because I didn't like anyone _touching_ me.

You all know about my past so it's obvious that I don't trust anyone. I didn't trust this 'Jerry' guy, even if my mom and Ella do, and allowing him near me with a sharp object was practically suicide. Heck, the last time I had a haircut in an actual salon, my mind was going on overdrive and I was sweating bullets. It was crazy. I mean, what if this guy was a clone of the real Jerry and would start threatening me with my life? Or what if it was a M-geek in disguise bent on killing everyone in this room right now?

Yes, I realize I sound like a maniac, but when you've lived my life, _anything_ was possible.

I trusted no one outside my family, not even my mom's friends or other CSM members. I was scared out of my life at the moment.

"Sweetie, that's for me to know and for you to find out." _God, I hated that saying._

After my hair was completely damp, he pinned most of my hair above my head, leaving only a few loose locks near my neck.

'_Oh crap…_' I thought. He's going to see my effing expiration date…

"Nice tattoo kid. Aren't you a little bit young to have one though?" He questioned.

"Nah, I got permission from my mom." I lied smoothly. Or so I hope it was.

"Cool…" was all he said and I started to pray he wouldn't mention this conversation to Ella.

While I thought about my expiration date, I didn't realize Jer had brought out a pair of scissors from his apron pocket.

'_Please don't slice my head off, please don't slice my head off…'_ I chanted in my head, on the verge of snapping.

And at that moment he brought down the blade to my neck, open and dangerously sharp.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It only took me 14 minutes to calm my nerves while getting my new haircut. (YEAH! Another record! I'm on a roll…)

Of course I didn't trust this Jerry guy one bit, but I eventually grew fine with his touch on my scalp and on my brownish tresses when I came to the conclusion that he didn't want to kill me. (And I find it so sad that I have to even confirm it.)

His hands were gentle on my hair as he picked up a lock, held it between his middle and index fingers and chopped it off, doing this process repeatedly. He would move my head in different angles as he worked away and I was able to see what was going on with the rest of my family.

Ella was having a trim of her long dark hair 3 seats to my right by a middle aged woman, her head down as she read a magazine. Farther off to my left, Nudge was making small talk with the dude who was straightening her dark brown hair, trying not to move her head to much to avoid being singed in the scalp. And finally, I was able to spot Angel from my mirror across the room, her silky bright blond hair being braided into a headband across the top of her head, making Angel look even more adorable if that were possible.

The process was long.

I was tempted to bring out my iPod from my pocket but thought better of it. I'd rather not have the wires to my earphones sliced through, thank you very much.

I did a lot of things to pass the time: drummed my fingers on my lap, crack my knuckles, looked at my dirty long nails, frowning slightly at my sad attempt at being a girl, spaced out, looked around, made popping sounds with my mouth… the list goes on actually.

I avoided the mirror throughout the whole makeover; I was _really_ anxious to find out what he was doing to me.

During the time I was looking around, I spotted a bunch of magazines on the table on front of me. They were multicolored and flashy with big bold letters, splayed left and right on the cover. These magazines left nothing to the imagination.

Curious, I picked up the one on top, which so happened to be the latest issue of People Magazine. The headlines and gossip made me raise an eyebrow, shocked that people actually enjoyed this kind of stuff, but I flipped open the cover anyway, with nothing to do.

I scanned through the articles and news, occasionally smiling and chuckling at the contents.

Okay, this was _rich_. I find it really interesting and hilarious that people obsess over celebrities. I mean, 'Whatshisname' and 'Whoeverthehellyouare' are finally getting married? _Who cares!_ Millions of people get married everyday and you don't see them on the news? Why do so many people like to snoop around and know actors and singers' business when clearly, they just want to live normal lives? What's so important about these people that paparazzi follow them everywhere, snapping photos of '' getting a latte at her local Starbucks? _Jeez…_ These people really need to get lives…

Despite my thoughts, I continued to go through the gossips and rumors, satisfying my need to be entertained. I didn't know four-fifths of the people from the stories, but they were hecka funny stuff anyway.

I was so distracted that when some lady came over to my side, telling me she was assigned to do my nails, I just thrust my free hand at her and continued to read.

Secretly, _very secretly, _I liked the idea of having my nails filed and painted.

Well, wasn't it obvious? Just a while ago, I actually felt disappointment at my craptastic-looking nails. If you were wondering, yes, I still felt the need to backhand the girl who was filing my nails at the moment. But, I wasn't as paranoid because really, like anybody would be able to kill me with a nail file and bottles of nail polish? _Oh my God! She will give me skin burn with that dangerous Emory board of hers! The horror! _Besides, I still have a girl side. I could still be girly. It's just buried deep down within me.

Way, _way_ deep down within me…

So I didn't faint from shock or feel too mortified by the idea of liking getting my nails done. It was perfectly acceptable, just like cute shoes.

Those thoughts ran through the back of my mind while at the same time I was internally laughing at the article I was reading about some dude dating some chick and then that dude broke it off with that chick to get with her best friend.

Can we all say WTF?

Soon, the manicurist had switched to my other hand, and when I looked at the one she'd just finished I found myself staring at shiny deep dark blue, neatly painted on my now perfectly filed nails. Wow. This girl worked miracles.

Faster than I though possible, both the manicurist (I never got to catch her name) and Jerry had finished. My toe nails, all filed and painted, now matched my finger nails and my hair was moist and in disarray, just finished with the haircut as Jerry left to go look for a blow dryer somewhere. Well, it was either fast or these magazines were just ridiculously amusing.

When Jerry came back, he was clutching a blow dryer in his right hand and a roller brush in the other.

'_Oh yay,'_ I thought, sourly, _'the fun part.'_

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Finally, _finally_ it was over.

I groaned internally one last time as Jerry pulled the roller brush out of my hair with finality and started fingering through it, putting every single strand of my hair in the 'proper' place.

I hated it. That was why I never blow dried my hair. The process was too long, too hot and too annoying and I didn't have the patience for that. My scalp was irritated and burning at the moment and I wasn't in a very good mood.

When I didn't feel Jerry's touch on my hair anymore, I looked up from my 6th magazine on my lap and stared at myself in the mirror.

If you expected me to double-over in shock and gape like an idiot at my reflection, you're dead wrong.

I'll admit, I was stunned at how easily they transformed my scruffy, dirty, I-don't-know-how-to-clean-up look into something more regal, girly and _youthful_ even, but I wasn't one to be melodramatic about these things.

I took in every single detail as I studied my appearance in the mirror.

My long, wavy blondish-brown hair that reached my lower back was now cut short, until a little past my shoulder blades. The back was one-length, except for the hair that frames my face which was layered, the shortest strands starting at my cheeks. All of my hair was blow dried straight, except for the layers that curled inwardly, towards my neck. The brown and blond bits of my hair mixed well and when I ran a hand through my shiny hair, I felt no snarls or tangles.

The only thing I didn't like was the side-swept bangs they gave me, a bunch of hair that arched over my right eye neatly. I mean, I was trying to get rid of hair getting into my eyes, not the opposite effect!

But even with the piss-off bangs, all in all I looked so much prettier, I'll admit. I could maybe even pass for my age now, what with the limp, dull tresses gone.

I felt much happier now too, despite my hot head. I didn't think I was capable of looking so _girly_. (minus that time in New York, but they made me look 20) Maybe this makeover wasn't such a bad idea…

I gave a small smile to Jerry and thanked him, before I got up from the chair and went over to Ella. Her trim was done ages ago, and she looked up from her magazine as I twirled around and smiled brightly at her. I wouldn't have done that normally but I was playing along for Ella's sake, because I knew how much fun she was having with this. Nudge and Angel were talking in hushed whispers among themselves close to Ella, and when they saw me, they all stared with amazement and wonder.

Nudge was the first to gush. "Cam! You look gorgeous! Amazing! Beautiful! Stun—"

I was blushing furiously; I wasn't used to so much praise and I could bet you it wasn't even _that_ good, but that's what sisters are for. "Not one Barbie comment." I threatened.

"_Pu-lease_. You look _way_ prettier than Barbie now."

I was fire truck red.

I received compliment after compliment from each of them and I thanked them in return. (What else are you suppose to say when people compliment you?) I then paid for all the expenses, said our goodbyes to the workers and we all piled into my car again to get drive-thru lunch before heading home.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Let's play the 'What Did Max Do When She Got Home?' game!

Did she:

Flaunt her new 'do to the rest of the flock like she's all that?

B. Act all shy about it and try to sneak past everyone, only to be caught by one of the flock, preferable Fang?

Or C. Acted all badass and pretend she didn't care as she strode past the gaping flock, smirking inwardly along the way?

If you guessed A…you're correct!

Nah, I'm just kidding ya; I did neither.

When I got home, I immediately walked as fast as I could to the staircase, flew up and through the halls to my room, dead tired. Never mind telling my mom or my family that I was home; I would see them later for dinner anyway.

I didn't know _why_ I was so tired but I guess sitting in a chair all day, anxious and bored at the same time out of your mind does that to you. .I was barely conscious as I dragged myself towards my bed and threw myself on the cold, comfortable mattress, my Converse-clad feet just hanging over the edge of my bed. And I just…slept.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Max…Maaax…Max? Max honey…Max! MAXIMUM RIDE!_

"Whuu-?" I drawled unintelligently just before I fell of my bed with a loud thud.

I cursed irritably, rubbing my behind before looking around, only see that I was surrounded in complete darkness.

'_What time is it?'_ I faintly thought before my mind went back to the annoying calls of my name. Someone was calling my name, but I didn't know where it was coming from…

'_Max...Max, are you there? MAX!'_

Ugh. Where the hell was it coming from? I stood up groggily and did a 360 of my room, trying to see in the dark where that voice was coming from. Slowly, my mind started to work again, my thoughts processing as the gears turned and I realized it was my mother's voice.

I continued to search for my mom in the dark room, blinking sleep out of my eyes when in the far end of my room, close to the door, I noticed a tiny green light blinking.

I stumbled across the room to get to it, stubbing my toe on the couch on the way before I made it and stared blankly at the small white box stuck to the wall.

Right. The stupid intercom.

All the rooms in this house had an intercom with a bunch of buttons where you could either buzz just one person's room to all the rooms in this humongous house.

It was annoying, and really, we have feet people! Let's not be lazy here!

We rarely use the intercom because it was only for emergencies. Was there an emergency right now?

I pressed the button and spoke into the mic. "_What?_" I spat venomously. Okay, I knew it was probably an emergency, but you would be cranky too if you woke up to someone screaming your name.

"_Max_, it's already 6:30! The party will start anytime soon! Get down here!" My mom shot back, a tinge of panic to her voice.

"Uhh…party?" WTF was my mom talking about… I leaned against the wall, my eyes barely open.

"_MAX!_" My mom shouted and I heard voices chuckle in the background.

Oh right, I was on loud-speaker.

"Okay, alright. I'm sorry… I guess I'll be down in a minute…" I said just so she could stop. I didn't know what the _hell_ she was talking about, but I really didn't care.

I let go of the button and trudged towards my bathroom to freshen up.

And by freshen up, I just ran a comb through my newly-trimmed hair and washed my face to wake myself up. Just before I left my room, I took of my hoodie because it was so hot and lazily walked down the hall to the stairs.

Right when I was a little past the second landing my mom shouted my name for the bajillionth time today. _What was her problem?_

I raised my head, an eyebrow raised in frustration that everyone kept shouting, to see everyone dressed…so formally.

Wait. _What?_

My mom's face matched the color of her flattering gown – dark red – which surprised me because mom was the very conservative type.

Ella was dressed in this dark blue empire cut dress that stopped just above her knees, with straps that crossed her back and silver gladiator sandals.

Next to her was Nudge and Angel. Nudge was wearing a purple balloon skirt type dress with this ribbon on her right hip and some espadrilles.

Angel on the other hand wore a – no brainer – baby pink dress with a square neckline and a couple of layers of lace under the skirt. And to complete her look, she wore a pink bow on her head which made her look uber adorable that if she used the Bambi eyes right then, God help us all.

The boys – who were so much, _much_ more luckier – just wore normal black pants and button down polos, all of their sleeves rolled up to their elbows. They all wore neckties too, I noticed, but Fang kept his loosely tied and Iggy didn't knot his, leaving it untied around his neck.

The girls had disappointed and pissed off expression on their faces while Iggy and Gazzy were laughing silently behind them. Fang was across the spans of the hall, farther from the group and leaning on the wall looking oh so hot and badass, half-smiling at me and looking amused.

And then I realized what I was wearing: dark washed skinny jeans, my worn out chucks and the tank top I wore this morning under my hoodie that had a picture of an ice cream on it.*

Clearly, I didn't receive the memo.

"Max, why aren't you dressed up?" My mom asked in a much calmer voice, but her face still help disappointment. _What did I do?_

I shook my head, really, utterly confused. "I'm sorry mom but I don't understand a _single_ word you're talking about."

She sighed exasperatedly as the girls rolled their eyes and the boys laughed even more.

"The _party_ Max! Don't you remember? This is so important for the CSM! I told you a million times it was going to be today! Were you _not_ listening?"

Guilt flooded through me. I don't remember her ever mentioning it but I was probably not even paying attention to her drone about it the past few days. I was a horrible daughter.

I stared at her and bit my lip, feeling bad.

She groaned, "Max, I have no time for this! Go upstairs and get dressed…" She said and waved her hand dismissively at me.

"_Sorry…?"_ My mom _did_ know I had no formal clothes, _right_?

"Max, _please_…"

"Wait. Dressed…dresses…I have no idea what you're talking about." I said slowly, probably looking confused.

"Just hurry and get dressed for the party! Keep in mind it's _formal_, okay?" my mom said.

I started to smile. "You do know I have nothing formal, right? No dresses, not even a blouse…what do you expect me to wear?" I asked, smug.

It was then that Nudge spoke up, "Dr. M, remember when we bought that _dress_ for Max when she wasn't there with us." She said and smiled sweetly.

_Oh no she didn't._

"I wasn't where with whom when what happened?" I asked with an edge to my voice now. I had a faint clue where this was going…and it wasn't going to be pretty.

"_Oh!_"my mom gasped, "Max, the dress! It's in your closet. We bought it for you when you weren't there!"

My stomach lurched. "You…you bought me a _dress_?" panic sunk into my voice, "I take back what I said. I probably have some blouse Nudge bought lying around somewhere in my closet. It goes perfectly well with my jeans and I think I might have some clean sneakers lying around—" I started to rant but was cut short when my mom said, "No, Max. This is a formal event. You _have_ to wear a dress." She was serious.

"_Nudge_, we made a _deal_…" I turned to her and growled, teeth clenched, glaring at her. She and Angel looked to the ground, avoiding eye contact.

"I know we did, but your exact words were, _'I let you guys dress me up today and you have to promise not to bother me about it anymore. At all. Just this once and nothing more.' _And we didn't cross that! We didn't choose the dress, we just _persuaded_ your mom to get the dress so we didn't exactly break that promise!" Nudge said, speaking rapidly to get her excuse out.

I groaned. "Guys! _Quit twisting my words!_ That's still dressing me up! And where…where _was_ I? How did—"

"You were in detention." Angel said flatly and I couldn't help but grin to myself.

Yes, even in a situation like this I was capable of grinning.

I might as well just tell you all, now that the cat's out of the bag.

I was trying to keep it secret, but it's inevitable: I get into trouble at school. Like _a lot._

It's not like nobody has never gone to detention _anyway_. I was a born troublemaker, and so were Iggy and Fang. Sometimes we get sent to detention for the lowest reasons, like answering back a teacher. (Like, _seriously_?) Sometimes we'd even all be in detention at the same time. It's hilarious. But I'm trying to get better, so I wouldn't always disappoint my mom.

I heard Iggy cough, and when I looked over to him he was smiling widely, teeth and all. It took me everything I had not to smile back and start laughing. This was serious.

My mom's voice brought me back to the situation. "Look Max, don't be difficult. We put a lot—"

"You have _got_ to be kidding." I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest.

"_Please Max_, just do us all a favor…" my mom sounded like she was begging.

I thought about it. I know I seemed like such a brat at the moment, but this was the final straw. A makeover I could handle. I didn't care if I looked girly or preppy or whatever, because what really matters is what's inside. I could look totally innocent and yet bring out a can of whoop ass if necessary. Makeovers are actually fine, because they're deceiving. Useful for battle and stuff. And I know that's contradicting to the fact that I _don't_ want to wear a dress, because after all, a dress is just clothing, but just the thought of wearing one makes me feel so…vulnerable. Weak. Defenseless.

And I hated that feeling.

_I couldn't fight in a dress!_ I didn't see the use in wearing one. If I were a normal 16 year old girl, I would probably love the idea of wearing one, but I'm not, and paranoia constantly wraps around my heart. I hate not being strong, not being able to defend others, which is the reason why I'm always on guard. Always alert. Ready to take down 30+ Erasers if necessary. And I can't do that in a _dress. _I can't take on an army in a _dress_; it's just not done.

Then again, we were just at home. And we were safe now, sorta. Nothing's attacked us in the months that we've been staying here in Connecticut and the flock was here by my side incase anything happens…

I sighed deeply. I repeatedly chanted in my head that nothing's going to go wrong. It's just, after all, a party. And this is for my _mom_; I'd do anything for her.

"Mom, you so owe me a tub full of chocolate chip cookies when this is over," I said to her then turned towards the girls, "and I'm not done with you 3." I looked coldly into their eyes before rushing up the stairs.

Only to scream a few seconds later.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**On the topic of hair, I'm so annoyed with mine. :| Like, it only, **_**only **_**looks good when I'm just about to sleep or when I'm in the house but it looks **_**horrible**_** at school or when I go out. I hate it. :(**

**I didn't want Max to be too exaggerated about hating makeovers and stuff because she doesn't seem like the type to, even if she is tomboy-ish. I mean, she didn't over-react when she got her first makeover in New York so…yeah. :)**

***the link to her tank top (which I wanted to buy before) is in on my profile**

**I hope you all got what Max meant about wearing dresses. Basically she doesn't like them because it makes her feel vulnerable. Period. I just got her to rant so you all know how much she dislikes the idea.**

**And yeah… I'm sorry it was just about the makeover and the party. I won't be surprised if this doesn't get a lot of reviews… Next chapter will be happy, I promise. :)**

**I'm sort of bummed that only 7 out of 25 subscribers still follow this story. :( I just don't get it; do they ignore the alerts or they just stopped completely because it became so bleh? It's saddening really…**

**I don't thrive on reviews and readers (they just encourage me to update faster), I write because I want to and because somewhere out there, I know that someone enjoys this story, but I can't help but feel down.**

**Oh wells… :) That's life!**

**If there are any mistakes, just tell me! Because I was kinda out of it when I was editing some stuff. :P**

**Yadda yadda…review and tell me what you think! And if you want, check out my other story: Camp Northwoods ;)**

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**


	18. False Pretense

**Hey guys! I'm back, sorta. **

**I am just so busy, I'm not even going to waste your time with my apologies and excuses so I'll get right on it. :)**

**Thanks a lot guys! Really. I got so much more reviews in my previous chapter than the one before that and I really don't deserve it but I'm thankful and happy anyways. :P**

**Replies to the reviews:**

**SharpestSatire: I'M SORRRYYY! :(**

**BlackAthena: I'm glad you liked it! XD Imagining it was fun for me too. :P**

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**Back to the story, enjoy!**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Horrible. Just…horrible._

That single thought continued to swirl in my mind for what seemed like the bajillionth time. But it seems like that's the only word that was capable of expressing how I truly felt at the moment.

I stood in front of my full length mirror, squirming in the short dress. Or maybe a piece of tissue would be the more appropriate term.

The dress was completely white, looking so pure and clean, I snorted at the irony. It was strapless with a sweetheart neckline, but I think it was modest enough not to show _too_ much skin in the upper regions. It hugged my body perfectly, maybe a bit _too_ tightly, and the skirt stopped just 4 inches above my knees. It wasn't pleated nor did it hug my legs; it just dropped straight down my legs once the dress reached my hips.

It was also extremely uncomfortable, and I hated it. This was my first time _ever_ to wear a dress and I didn't like it one bit. I just don't understand how girls enjoy this…this _torture_! Goodness, if this was their idea of fun then someone just please confiscate my woman card or something.

'_Just don't think about it, Max. You're neither vulnerable nor weak. If you chicken out now, you _will _be weak. You can do this. For mom.' _I chanted in my head as confidently as I could.

I put my hands on my hips and stared at my reflection again with an eyebrow raised.

Okay, I'll let you in on a little secret and I'll only admit this to you now. I will never, ever, ever, exclamation point, _ever_ repeat this nor allow this thought in my head ever again but…

I actually thought I looked pretty right now.

_Egad! Me? Pretty! It's the end of the world! Everybody panic!_

Ha. I loved exaggerating stuff in my head. But if the world was ending, who were you supposed to call? Ghost Busters?

Nah, I'm just humoring you. I immediately regretted thinking about all this the moment I figured the answer to my own question. I tried hard not to think about it but I already knew that if the world was ending people were supposed to call _me_.

What a mood-ruiner.

Back to the topic, I didn't mean I look pretty just from the makeover, but my whole self in that single second.

Some people might say I am pretty, but I really just look…normal. Plain. Boring, even. I looked like your typical California girl (Yeap, I'm unforgettable!). I mean, seriously, there are thousands of girls with the same physique, same hair, same eyes and same attitude as me so I wasn't exactly extraordinary and unique. Well, except for the wings.

But right now, I found that I actually agree with these people. I was slightly tanned (and yeah, it's natural) and it complemented well with the whiteness of the dress. I thanked God my curves actually held up the dress so I wouldn't have to worry about flashing anyone by surprise in the party. My white wings that turned brown towards the tips matched my eyes (Yeah, the girls cut slits through the back of the dress so I wouldn't find any loop holes _not_ to wear the dress) and looked regal; like I really was an angel. I was tall, which was kind of a downside because it made the dress even shorter, but all in all it didn't look slutty. As in, honestly, I really thought it looked nice. The dress looked more of an elegant dinner dress than some cheap hooker costume. It was just so simple and stylish; it made me look almost decent. Almost.

My hair was still fresh from the haircut and it took me just a few seconds to smoothen out the loops and knots by just running a hand through my hair. I made extra precautions to cover the back of my neck at all times before going back to my closet to get shoes.

Opening the doors again, I noticed a pair of shoes I have never seen before in my life and a new wave of anger rose inside my chest.

'_Nudge should be saying her goodbyes to the flock by now.'_ I thought acidly. She was _so_ going to get it, it wasn't even funny anymore.

It was hard to miss because it was placed directly in front of all my other shoes, and the fact that it was shiny may have contributed to that too.

Positioned right there, were a pair of 4 inch strappy heels made of some gold material that was all glossy and sparkly. The straps criss-cross on front of your feet and the small buckles end at the ankles. All in all they were cute and you all know I was a sucker for cute shoes.

But you know what I did?

I tossed them to the side and started rummaged around my shoes for a moment to look for something that both matched my outfit and was actually clear of blood stains and dirt. I would do that much for my mom. Wasn't I such a darling?

Well. Did you really expect me to stupidly slip on those deceiving death traps and trapeze around the party like a drunken idiot? I don't think so.

I was finally able to find a pair of double-tongued navy blue Chucks with gold oriental-looking swirls in the sides, something I've only worn thrice and were still in good condition. I slipped them on, pulled down the dress one more time in front of the mirror and flipped my hair so that it covered my neck before exiting my room in a flourish. Might as well get this over with…

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Freaking dress…Kill Nudge…so dang short…get my hands on her…ugh! So uncomfortable…jeebus! That crazy little…"

I was muttering like the psycho that I am (and trying so very hard not to curse) the whole way to the staircase. Wanna know _why?_

_Well_, it seems Nudge and Angel _didn't_ know that this stupid itsy bitsy post-it starts to ride 2 inches up your thighs when you walk for long periods of time.

I figured this out as I was walking along the halls (might I remind you there were _a lot_ of them) and whenever I tug down the dress, it starts to ride up again anyways 2 seconds later. Nudge was going to die a slow and painful death, I assure you.

I was wearing white shorts underneath (I'm not an idiot) but even still, I hated the idea of showing too much leg.

When I was near the staircase, I heard faint giggles and chuckles, indicating that the flock could already hear my rambling and I sighed exasperatedly before heading down the steps.

"I would kill you right now, then you bring you back to life and kill you again if this pathetic-excuse for a dress weren't making it so hard for me to walk without flashing my private parts." I said coldly and sarcastically, directing my words to Nudge as I stomped down the stairs, still trying (and failing miserably) to tug the skirt down.

My mom and Ella were trying not to laugh, covering it with smiles while Nudge and Angel slapped high-fives and grinned so wide _my_ cheeks hurt just thinking about it.

I guess Angel sent a mental-image to Iggy because he was doubled-over in hysterics, crying and clutching his stomach with his arms. Gazzy was just shocked I guess, as he stared at me with wide eyes. He probably never imagined his mother/sister-figure to dress so…_ugh_.

And Fang. He was still leaning against the wall with his arms crossed as his eyes followed me. I could tell he was also shocked, but he didn't show it.

'_What's he thinking?'_ I wondered. Heat flooded my cheeks at that thought and I had to look away to keep from embarrassing myself even further.

God, I could just imagine… I mean, the flock's never seen me so…_girly_. I wonder what they're all thinking. What Fang's thinking… I felt like vomiting just imagining their thoughts.

I finally reached the end of the staircase and all the girls swarmed to me, all of them talking at the same time.

"Max, why aren't you wearing the heels we bought you?" Nudge shrieked first. _Of course_, she couldn't just appreciate the fact that I was wearing a dress at all and came to shout about my choice of footwear.

"Nudge, why aren't you saying your goodbyes yet before I kill you?" I retorted back sarcastically and was really about to _lunge_ at her when Ella and my mom stepped on front of me. Damn.

"Max, that dress looks wonderful on you." my mom said. Well of course she'll say that, she's my _mother_.

"Hear, hear." Ella second and she smiled an encouraging smile at me. I grimaced in return.

"But of all dresses why…_this?_" I indicated with my hands, whining like a little kid.

"But you really are pretty tonight." Angel spoke up and tackled me in a waist-crushing hug.

"Handkerchief…already tight…can't breathe!" I gasped.

When she let go, she chuckled and I clutched my abdomen in pain.

"Goodness, what have you been taking? Steroids?" I joked and smiled at her, "You better count you blessings my mom's here and I have to be on 'good behavior' or I would have already been dragging your dead bodies to the garden." I continued.

"Since when has Maximum Ride ever been on good behavior?" Iggy said, coming closer to the group of clustered girls.

I rolled my eyes and punched him hard on his arm. He yelped and rubbed the spot.

"Nice shoes." Gazzy said, closer to the group now. He was staring at my Chucks and grinning at my fashion statement. I rolled my eyes and bumped fists with him.

"Okay, okay. We're ready, I'm in a dress, I promise not to kill Nudge and Angel _tonight_. Let's just get this party over with." I said and started walking towards the front doors to greet our guests.

We stood off a little to the living room waiting for them to arrive, and when the sound of our doorbell rang throughout the house, Fang – who I haven't talked to since this morning – stood beside me and held my hand, intertwining our fingers.

I looked up at his face and into his eyes, and all the things that he was telling me didn't need to be said out loud.

Because Fang was telling me that he knew I hated this and that he would be here for me. He was telling me everything will be alright.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I was panting heavily, clutching onto one of those half-tables with vases on them to steady myself.

From someone else's point of view, say my mom's, the party was running smoothly. All the guests have arrived, all 150+ of them, and were now all scattered in the ballroom, living room and all around the halls after dinner.

Dinner was…_whoa_. The food was extremely delicious (but still not as good as Iggy's cooking; his is undefeatable) and everyone was talking, clacking their utensils on their plates and laughing. The atmosphere was light and happy and there were no accidents or troubles coming from the flock. (I think my mom was keeping a _very _close eye on Iggy and Gazzy)

But from my point of view, _I couldn't frickin' take it._

We had to greet practically _all_ the guests and answer all of their stupid questions like, "Are you Maximum Ride?" and "Can you really fly?"

No idiots, these 14 foot wings sticking out of my back are just props and my name is Cynthia Snell, though everyone keeps telling me I look _exactly_ like Maximum Ride for some really strange unfathomable reason!

_Jeez._

Then at dinner, all the noise was bouncing off the walls and a headache started to creep at the corners of my head. I couldn't even talk to the flock because I was too busy entertaining other guests and I was getting just _sick_ of it.

So now here I am, after dinner, trying to calm my nerves and get rid of my claustrophobia.

I needed to go back into the crowd of people to look for at least one of the flock or Ella. If I couldn't find one of them within 5 minutes I'm outta here.

Aside from trying to look for my family, I was also slightly trying to avoid Mark Roberts, the flock's number one fan himself.

He's a harmless kid and about a year younger than me with dark hair and grey eyes, but he was, in one word, _annoying._

I was flattered and all and I was nice to him at first, but after the 5th time I've encountered him in CSM meetings and parties like this, I just wanted to rip my ears off whenever I spotted him, I swear.

He was like, the boy version of Nudge, but one billion times worse!

He wasn't a creepy stalker and he didn't have a crush on any of us girls or anything like that; he just sort of looks up to us, always following us and asking questions.

He's an innocent boy so I don't really have the guts to backhand him to get him to shut up. We all just sort of smile and nod while he rants on about how he wishes he could fly like us.

Uhh…great.

I took a deep breath, preparing myself for the hordes of guests, when out of nowhere, strong arms suddenly wrapped around my abdomen and I felt warm breathe on the side of my neck.

I gasped in surprise and tried to calm my reflexes from spinning around and kneeing a certain _someone_ in the crotch.

"Don't. Flippin'. _Do that!_" I scolded Fang, though it didn't come out the way I intended it to because I was still out of breath.

"Max…" he whispered my name and I shivered at how close his mouth was to my ear, "I never got the chance to tell you. You look really beautiful tonight." He said, his voice sounding so warm and seductive, like melted chocolate.

Okay, how the hell did get so…like _that?_ Does he practice the way he plans to woo his girlfriend or something?

I actually giggled against my will, and internally scolded myself for sounding so…_fangirl-ish_, but I could help but be flattered with the way he put it.

He thought I was _beautiful_.

I know boyfriends always told that to their girlfriends, but I just _liked_ the fact that he said beautiful, and not something like hot, or sexy or any of those other degrading adjectives.

"Maaax…" He whined. Yeah, he _whined_. What the hell… "I feel like…like I haven't talked to you in ages." He said into the crook of my neck, his voice sounding oddly husky, and I shivered again.

"Don't be melodramatic Fang, I talked to you this morning." I tried to say, though my words probably came out slurred.

His arms wrapped around my torso even tighter, my back against him with my wings smushed onto his chest, leaving no space between us. He now started trailing kisses from the side of my face down to my collarbone, his lips lightly brushing my skin.

Do you blame me for my garbled words?

"You know what I mean…" He said into my jaw and continued to…_distract me_.

I tried to say something, but the warmth of his lips made my mind short out and I couldn't think straight.

Jeez… I was so easy to distract.

This house could be burning, World War III could have started, and the universe could have exploded at this moment and I really couldn't care less.

I closed my eyes, sinking into pure bliss. _Oh God…_

My right hand held the side of his face as he continued, the kisses becoming more hungry and fervent and the spots where his lips trailed felt like they were on fire.

I don't know how long this went on, and I didn't _want_ it stop, but I'm telling you, I have the strongest will-power man has even known and you should give me an award or something, because as his lips started to trail towards the back of my neck (which is easier to kiss because he was standing behind me), the gears in my head started to turn, an annoying beeping sound started inside my head and my mind was screaming at me about my expiration date.

_My expiration date._

I gasped again and my eyes flew open, instantly snapping out of it.

He was still kissing my neck, his dark head visible at the corner of my eye, and I felt really disappointed and bad at what I did next.

I drew away from Fang faster than I thought humanly possible, forcing his arms around me to let go, and his lips made a slight sucking sound from the sudden movement.

Uhh…right.

Note to self: Kick Fang where the sun don't shine if he leaves a mark.

Both hurt and confusion were written in his eyes when I turned back around to face him. As his darks eyes stared into mine, I felt guilt flood through me.

WTH. He made _me_ feel like the bad guy for pulling away from _him?_

"Fang…" I tried to think of an excuse, "This is a party. I'm tempted to go upstairs with you and hole up in the game room the whole night, really I am,' he slightly grinned at that, "but my mom said we have to stay downstairs for the party. You know the rules."

He stared at me for a moment before sighing and went forward just to wrap his arms around me.

He was a head taller than me (which I hated by the way), so he was able to lean his chin of the top of my head as he just held me there, getting stuck in the moment. I soaked up every single detail of this second as best as I could so that I wouldn't forget how perfect this was.

We just stood there for a moment, like that time in the park, and the mood was something more calm and relaxed now compared to what it was a few seconds ago. I felt at ease despite everything that was going on at the moment. Fang always made things better.

"I almost forgot…" he said, his voice close to a whisper again.

"Hmm?" I mumbled against his chest with my eyes closed.

He drew away from me slightly and I instantly missed his arms around me.

And that last sentence sounded so mushy and sappy, sometimes I couldn't even believe those thoughts actually go through my head.

He reached into his pocket, taking a few seconds to find whatever he was looking for before drawing his hand out again to reveal…

…a silver necklace.

Even I don't have a witty line for what just happened.

"I've had this for a long time now, but I keep forgetting to give this to you." He said, unhooking the clasp.

"W-what'd you get me a necklace for?" I asked, eyeing the blue crystal pendant hanging from the chain.

"Your birthday, you idiot. What? The whole flock can give you presents and I can't?" he asked, grinning.

"_Noo…_I just thought…" my voice trailed off. Oh I _was_ an idiot…

He just raised an eyebrow but didn't question as he spun me around before I even had time to realize what he was doing. He brought the chain in front of my face and pulled it back a little against my neck to close the hook, his fingers brushing the sides of my neck slightly.

It was romantic, I'll admit, but then again, he was _this_ close to seeing my expiration date. _Again_. My heart wasn't exactly fluttering, more like pounding against my rib cage throughout the whole episode.

Jeez… I wish life didn't have to be such an ass.

If you guys are sitting on the edges of your seats again, waiting for disaster to strike, I'm laughing at you right now.

Cause in about 0.3 seconds, I was able to swiftly turn around, accidentally whipping Fang in the face with my hair (whoops), before he even had the chance to wrap his fingers around my hair to lift it from under the chain.

_Ha._ Take that life!

He gave me the universal _'What the hell was that?'_ look when I turned back around to face him and all I did was smile sheepishly. I had to think of something fast to say to him, anything to make it seem like I had to tell him sometime to excuse me from slapping him in the face with my hair.

My mind worked to think of an idea lightning fast, anything to say to him that wouldn't seem too random or stupid, when all of a sudden a brilliant, _brilliant_ plan just came to me coincidentally (thank you higher power out there, whoever you may be, for giving me such luck at a moment like this) and I grinned so wide, my bright teeth could've overpowered the sun.

"Fang, I've got an idea." I said, sounding so sure of myself.

And people doubt _my_ skills of being leader of the flock. Psh.

I tiptoed at the same time that Fang bent down (And I'm just sayin' – I _still_ hate him for being taller) as I whispered in his ear my idea, my voice tinged with excitement as the plan appealed to me more and more.

When I took a step back to see what Fang thought, I grinned even wider if it were possible because he was smiling too. _With his teeth._

And if you guys didn't already know, Fang never smiled with his teeth.

Man, I wish I had a camera right now.

"That's perfect." Was all he said before he held my hand tightly, intertwining our fingers, and started weaving through the crowd to find the rest of the flock.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

'_Stupid wound…'_ I complained in my head as I wiped away the blood seeping out of the gash on my knee. I then proceeded to wipe it on the bark of the huge tree I was on before going back to scan the forest.

_So Maximum Ride's brilliant plan was leave blood smears all over the forest to scare the crap out of innocent hiker?_

Well no, but that would be hilarious.

I was just trying to get rid of the blood dripping down my shin – the results of our very competitive, rowdy and aggressive game of Flock Chase.

Back when we still lived in the E-house and Jeb hadn't left us yet, the flock and I just went for a flight one day which turned into a game of tag. And that game of tag turned into freeze tag. And that game of freeze tag also included hide-and-seek. And that mashed up game also involved marco polo. And Killer. And about 5 more other games.

Which resulted in our game – the flock's game.

We set up intricate rules just for this game. Just for us. And the best part is: only the flock could play this game.

I felt a tiny bit guilty that we didn't invite Ella to play, but this was only meant for the six of us, back when it was _just_ the six of us. Besides, none of us have the patience and the mind to explain all the complex rules to Ella because there were so _many_ of them, that we told ourselves that only the people who were there when we invented the game – meaning the 6 of us - were allowed to play. I'm even surprised they remembered all the conditions.

Well that, and that fact that you need wings to play.

It was a brilliant idea to play Flock Chase at the moment because we were all so bored out of minds, we had nothing else to do and it's been a while since we've played this.

I laughed silently to myself as I remembered past Flock Chase games, crouched while clinging to the bark of the tree with my back against the trunk, trying not to be too loud.

God, I forgot how _fun_ this game was. The last time we played this was 3 years ago.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nudge jump swiftly from one tree to the next, winking at me mid-jump before disappearing again in the darkness.

It pays to be African-American at times like this.

Receiving the signal, I looked to my bottom left and saw Gazzy trying to blend in with the trees.

And it was so not working for him.

Before, we used to play Flock Chase in twos, where I would be paired up with the Gasman, Fang would be with Angel and Iggy would be with Nudge. A fair pair of an older kid with a younger one.

But now, we decided to play girls vs. boys because Angel and Gazzy argued that they were old enough to work in a bigger group. (this game had a lot to do with coordination and team work)

I backed up on a thick branch on the tree I was on before running and jumping 12 feet to the next tree, zeroing in on Gazzy.

His spot was so vulnerable.

He was far from his base, 2 of his lives were gone and not one of his team mates gave him a life for back-up. This was the perfect kill.

I spotted a flash of pink ruffles in a blink of an eye, and realized that Angel was also targeting her brother a few feet away from me, all of us cornering him.

I made a gesture with my fingers in the air, knowing they were watching, telling them to attack at the count of 3 but to keep quiet at the same time.

They all nodded and we got into positions.

_3…_

I crouched again, preparing myself for the launch.

_2…_

I saw a streak of _black_ a split second before the count of 1, and I felt dread flood my body.

_This was a trap._

I knew Angel read my mind as my eyes widened in panic, noticing her hesitation in my peripheral view. She didn't even have time to warn Nudge, who launched herself forward, ready to tackle Gazzy to the hard snow-covered ground.

_No! _I screamed in my head at Nudge, jumping after her as well to stop her.

_Dang it!_ Why didn't I notice this before!

I just knew Fang or Iggy would be guarding him, using him as bait to be able to get to us. And if one of them tagged Nudge, who was the first to show herself, then she would get 'frozen' in place and we would have to save her as always. And I just _know_ Iggy would be put on guard duty to see to it that no one would rescue Nudge, and if we spend all our time trying to rescue her, Fang could come at us from behind, and we would lose.

And you all know I can't take losing.

I pushed her out of the way in mid-air, looking tres dramatic. I was successful, but suddenly long fingers wrapped around my ankle and I fell to the snow.

I was now completely _cold_ and _wet_. The perfect combo.

I twisted my body around to fight and in the next few seconds, it became a full-out _war_.

Once the sneaking around strategy is out of the window, we all just start to fight each other for the win. To win the game, you and your opponent have to try to tap each other in the spot between your wings.

Sure, it sounds easy, but that's not until you get whacked by 7 foot wings covered in feathers. Not the best feeling in the world.

We were wrestling mercilessly on the snow now, completely soaking ourselves.

Sometimes, the best thing about Fang was that he didn't go easy on you just because you were a girl. I didn't want him to treat me differently and I especially didn't want to win because he was cheating.

That was worst than losing.

I socked him in the face at the same that that he kicked me in the stomach, our bodies twisting around each other as we struggled to get a good view and reach of each other's backs.

I clawed at his arm when he was close to flipping me on my stomach, and with my perfectly manicured nails, they dug a little too deep and 4 straight bloody lines suddenly appeared on his arm.

Oops.

Minutes passed and we were still fighting but I was barely able to see through the punches and kicks that Angel beat Gazzy, and Iggy beat Nudge; it was a tie.

Actually, this game had a bunch of flaws, like that fact that we could use any of our abilities against each other, but it was more fun that way. More challenging.

Now it was up to me to win.

A sprained wrist, a split lip, a bunch of scratches, 4 wounds and a ton of bruises later, I finally got somewhere.

I was miraculously able to straddle his waist with my knees, pinning his arms to his sides while facing him.

The snow around his head on the ground soaked his hair, and we were both panting heavily from the battle.

I could see the rest of the flock from my peripheral view, watching closely to see who would win. Without having to look at them, I could hear Gazzy cheering Fang on, Angel proceeding to try to shut him up, a loud farting sound, followed by complaints and exclaims of disgust. How typically Gazzy.

Back to the fight, I leaned down over his body, my hands pinning his wrists down with my head directly beside his as I whispered, "I win."

I laughed lightly with my mouth directly beside his ear as _he_ shivered either from the cold or because I had that effect on him.

I then proceeded to flip him onto his stomach, with some difficulty but not to much, and was about to tap the spot between his wings when a loud bang echoed throughout the forest.

I could bet you my eyes were blazing as I narrowed them on the tall and lanky figure approaching our direction hesitantly, smartly coming to a halt close to the double doors.

"Guys? Are you there?" He called to us, kinda stating the obvious. I mean, if the flock suddenly went missing from a party and you spot six tall figures with oddly shaped bumps protruding from their backs just outside the gig they came from that could still be anyone, _right_?

"What do you want Mark?" I spat venomously. I wasn't usually this mean but _hello_, I was _this_ close to winning and he just _had_ to come and ruin the moment.

"Oh, uhh… your mom told me to look for you. Something about a speech…" He said, sounding unsure.

Something about a speech… What the hell is he talking about?

And then it came back to me.

_Oh snap!_

I quickly got off of Fang and helped him up from the snow, before proceeding to sprint like a maniac through the forest to get to the house without even thinking.

**- - - - - O - - - - -**

Yeap, I dove right into this without thinking, as usual.

I'll admit that I do things without stopping to think about the consequences, but I would never admit that _out loud_ or to anyone for that matter. It was what my flock, mom and Ella called pulling a 'Max'. (I feel so special I'm somewhat a verb now.) Even my friends back at school say the same thing, only this time it's called pulling a 'Cam'.

Ugh. People can be bullies sometimes.

So right now I was pulling a 'Max'. I took a faster, less crowded back route to get to the platform they set up in the living room, slowing down to a jog, which in human terms was running a marathon. I didn't stop to think about anything, I just kept up the pace because the words _'Don't disappoint mom…'_ kept running through my head.

When I finally made it to the makeshift stage, my footsteps pounded audibly on the hard wood, calling everyone's attention as the familiar buzz of voices died down. I headed for the microphone on the stand and, rather ungracefully and harshly, I pulled it from the stand and faced the crowd, the mic making a sharp piercing sound from the sudden tug.

As I was about to start spewing a typical CSM speech, I stopped mid-greeting, stared in confusion at the shocked, wide-eyed and open-mouthed mass, then looked at myself, wondering what the heck they were looking at.

'_Oh.'_ Was the only word that passed through my mind as my face flooded with heat.

I looked like something from out of a tornado. Or maybe I _was_ the tornado.

My whole body was soaking wet, drenched from the snow that has melted by now, and my sweat. My hair, which was just neatly framing my face a few minutes ago, was now a hornet's nest, a damp tangle of dark brown hair complete with twigs and dirt sticking out in certain areas. My now brown, off-white, grey and red smeared dress was caked with dirt, torn at some areas and smudged with blood that you wouldn't even believe it was white if you didn't see me in it pre-Flock Chase. Lastly, my face, legs and arms were full of bruises, scratches, wounds and blood, looking like I just took on a bear, spared with a horde of Erasers, swam the English Channel and wrestled with Nudge trying to get me into something girly and/or frilly. And trust me, the last situation was the scariest.

I knew my face was blushing cherry red, and I fought the strong urge to bolt from the room (which btw, is the second thing I was known for).

I cleared my throat, and tasted blood in the back of my mouth for a fraction of a second. _'I guess somewhere in my mouth was bleeding too.' _I thought and shuddered in disgust at the taste. Man, that was horrible.

I felt annoyed at the sight of everyone's expressions after the initial shock, ranging from confusion to disgust to even _boredom_, like they just wanted to get the heck out of this party. I felt ashamed at the sight of Ella and my mom in the crowd, because they always patronized me and treated me so well, and here I was embarrassing my mom's image (maybe?) and the party she's hosting. And I also felt a mix of confusion, rage, annoyance, sadness and even _longing_ at the sight of Jeb, because he had the nerve to show up and for some reason he always made me feel so lost and confused, like a little child.

These feelings swirled around my head, producing an irritating headache at my temples, and I was _so_ ready to do Signature Max move number 2, when my eyes spotted a group of people, too tall for their age with huge lumpy things sprouting from their backs.

I could help but smile as my flock rushed into the living room, causing a commotion as they collided and pushed through some people, muttering apologies along the way. They were dirty and wet and bloody, and everyone was shooting them mean looks, but they didn't care. And more happiness surged within me as they all looked up at me and smiled, gave a bunch of thumbs up in approval and winked at me, encouraging me to go on.

And then I wasn't afraid or embarrassed anymore. I wasn't alone in this, because I knew the flock would always be there to support me. The flock always gave me strength.

My expression then turned serious, the smile in my eyes converted into intensity and determination as I cleared my throat again and spoke with authority.

"Friends, family, colleagues and a bunch of people I don't know," I addressed them, "You're probably wondering what I'm doing here on stage, and I could see by the looks on your faces that you want me gone," at least some of them had the conscious to look guilty, "But frankly, I don't care what you think. I'm doing this for my mom, Valencia Martinez, and I'm here to talk about the CSM, so I'm telling you guys to wipe off those revolted and bored expressions on your faces and listen to what I have to say."

Okay, that wasn't exactly Presidential Speech material, and I could have chosen better words, but my goal was to catch their attention and make them listen to what I had to say.

The old Max fueled my speech, my 14 year old self with a potty mouth and zero knowledge on manners and etiquette suddenly coming back to life within me and guiding me through my words. I was still full of unethical surprises, don't get me wrong, but I've somewhat grown more mature over the past 2 years and my 14 year old self just came back for a moment.

Jeb told me before that I had to power to change and make decisions and get people thinking, despite the way I put it.

"…everything centers us, everything concerns us. We make the decisions. The decision to hurt Mother Earth, to destroy someone's home and to take lives. If we have the power to commit wrongs, we also have the power to right the wrongs…" I continued, my voice loud and clear as everyone looked up at me and took in what I was saying. I looked towards my flock and family and grinned back at them, my heart filled with warmth at their support for me.

And I knew in that moment, as cliché as it sounds, that everything would be okay. My family cared for me, and now I actually entertained the thought of telling them about my expiration date. It was kind of an eye-opener and I felt guilty for doubting them. I thought that they were changing, but now I know that they care. They would help me get through my death and be with me till the very end. They would never betray me, and they always gave me the strength to go on.

They were the main reason I was still fighting to stay alive.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**EH.**

**My minds in a jumble right now so please forgive me for any mistakes; it's 2am for me right now for crying out loud. **

**I feel so bad. I'm not sure if you would get this chapter 'cause sometimes I feel like if I know something, like a secret message in the story, some of you would know it too, and I'm not sure if the order of events or the way I put it was clear. Sorry. :(**

**This isn't important to read, but a few songs got me writing this and if any of you are in need of songs to buy/download, I often listened to Turn It Off by Paramore, Crystal Ball by Keane, That 70's Song by The Cab and the whole new album of The Maine called Black and White and A7X's new album called Nightmare. I hope you enjoy these songs too, if you take the time to listen to them. ;)**

**Now for the good part.**

**READ THIS PLEASE!**

**To get you hyped up, and to get me inspired and encouraged, I want you guys to review me the best review you could think of. It could be the best concrit, the funniest review, the most encouraging…whatever. Just the best you could think of.**

**In return, I'm going to give you a sneak peek into the future of Secrets and Lies. :) I'm warning you now that the 266 words probably won't make sense or even mean a thing to you guys, and that it'll be about 10 chapters away, but uhh…at least you have bragging rights! :D Like, 'I know this was going to happen **_**way**_** before you did, even if I didn't understand what the heck it was about!' and you could try to make sense out of it. ;)**

**So yeah, please review! I'm giving you readers until the end of this week (August 28, Sat.) to surprise me. :) **

**Peace out.**

**.: Tiffany :.**

**P.S. Don't forget t check out my other story: Camp Northwoods! :D**


	19. Author's Note 2

Hey guys!

I apologize profusely for getting your hopes up, receiving the e-mail about an update and all. I also hate myself for posting an Author's Note so no need get mad, ayt?

Summarized version of my excuse: I am _so_ not cut out to balance my time.

First term just finished and my grades were mediocre.

Mediocre grades = disappointed parents + 'You can do better' speech

Get the picture?

So I'm kinda, sort of going on a hiatus. Ya know, putting the story on PAUSE.

No, I will never abandon an unfinished story. I just have to sort out my messed up life first.

I will still continue to type out chapters on the weekends if I can, and I'll try my best to get in an update or two, but I'll make my grand comeback on December, after second term. :)

I also get that feeling when authors go on a hiatus: "Oh great… I have to wait till _ for her to update. _Fun._" But now I think I understand what they're getting at. We all have our excuses.

And I hope you guys can understand; school is really important and I did get exceptional grades once upon a time, so I think I'd like to see if I'm still 'smart for that'.

So yeah. More info/same story on my profile if you're wondering (though it's pretty much the same thing) Thanks for reading, supporting, helping and reviewing my story; this story wouldn't be happenin' if it weren't for you guys. I'll try (keyword: _try_) to put a lil' suh'um-suh'um up in the weekends but other than that, I am again sorry. (It was either that or my laptop gets confiscated. Be thankful.)

Thanks again for your patience guys!

Peace out.

.: Tiff :.


	20. The Truth Calls

Waz happenin' people? Okay, ew.

Anyways, my sincerest apologies for keeping you all waiting. :)

This hecka long chapter is dedicated to** SharpestSatire **for being the only person to review to my last AN. Not that I expected any of you to reply to that but her review encouraged me to write so you have her to thank. Thank you also for being a constant reviewer since chapter 6.

Some answers and a lot more questions will be revealed in this chapter. I hope you enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

…_glycolysis produces pyruvates, a 3-carbon molecule that is used in aerobic respira-_

"Boo."

I jumped in my seat as my pen went flying out of my fingers and landed on the marble floor. A tanned hand picked it up and I glared at its owner as he unsuccessfully tried to cover his chuckles.

Dismissal time. I changed back into my uniform as fast as I could after PE and went back to the classroom to finish taking down notes in Biology.

_I just wanted to go home._ After a boring game of soccer, I wasn't really in the mood to talk to anybody. Not to mention that just before I got to the classroom, I had to rush to the bathroom and proceeded to puke my guts out for no apparent reason. God, I felt so…_bothered_. Like there was an itch under my skin. I just wanted to go home, curl up under my covers and watch re-runs while eating mom's cookies.

Living in the now, I exhaled sharply and turned around in my seat. "That was unnecessary." I said, voice cold, but not mean enough to scare him away.

He put a hand on the table beside me, leaning all his weight on it. After handing the pen back to me, he ran a hand through his hair. "You should've seen the look on your face." Oh, I'm _so_ hilarious.

I got straight to the point. "What do you want, Zach? I'm sort of rushing; I have no time for chit-chat."

"Jeez. Is it your time of the month?" I punched him on the arm. "Ow. You've got quite a punch there." He rubbed his arm briskly, feigning pain. "Anyway, I was going to ask you if I could copy your Bio notes. I fell asleep in class and-" But while Zach was babbling on, he took one look at my notes and shut up. His eyes widened and he ran a hand through his hair again, an annoying habit I've already gotten used to.

"_What the frick is that?_" He said, sounding outraged as he continued to stare at my notes, a look of surprise and disgust evident. I turned towards my notes to see what he was looking at.

Nothing. There was nothing on the notebook but the notes I'd just taken down. What was he talking about? I scanned the page again to see what was so darn offending but I couldn't seem to-

"_Hey!_" I slapped his arm and gave him a sour look. "My penmanship isn't _that_ bad. A little messy but I can still write, jerk."

"_That bad?_ It looks like chicken shit! In fact, that's an insult to chicken shit! Do you even understand half the things you wrote down? My 2-year old brother could write better than you!" he exclaimed back rather harshly, but you could still see the underlying smile on his face.

I narrowed my eyes and stood up. "Like you could do any better, Anderson." I spat.

He silently opened his notebook on front of my face and raised an eyebrow, daring me to insult back. I rolled my eyes and faced his notebook-

And oh my goodness, his notes looked like they were written by the gods themselves.

His handwriting similar to some fancy script font that you downloaded off the internet, not even preprogrammed into Microsoft Word. I didn't think it was legal for a guy to have such nice note-taking abilities.

I looked back down at my notebook and frowned as I took in the messy scrawl that went up and down like hills. Arrows and scribbles were seen at different spots of the page for all my mistakes as well as an ink blot the time my pen broke and leaked through the next pages.

While I shamefully compared the notes, I mentally prayed for my Language Arts teacher who had to read my essays. Bless her soul.

I pushed his hand clutching his notebook away and glared at him again.

"Whatever. Notes are notes. As long as I'm able to study them, it doesn't matter." I spun on my heel and closed my notebook. I knew he was only joking and I didn't take it too personally, but it's not like I had a choice about how I wrote. While my family and I were busy getting tested, beaten and chased by hybrids that were designed to rip our throats out, we didn't have time to perfect our a's and e's.

"I don't think any girl has the right to have penmanship so…_horrible!_" he continued the act, but when he noticed that I wasn't arguing back, he immediately shut up. While I silently placed my stuff into my bag, I felt a hand on my arm and he spun me around. When I looked up, his emerald green eyes were wide, filled with concern and regret.

"Sorry Cam, you know I was only kidding, right? I mean, I could totally understand your handwriting but I might take a while to-"

My breathless chuckle cut him short. "It's not that, I just have a lot on my mind right now. That's all." I tried smiling at him but I'm thinking it came out more like a grimace.

And it was true. I guess that was really the root of the problem. The cause of the 'itch' under my skin. My thoughts were going at a mile a minute that I felt so flustered and unkempt.

"Well…you wanna tell me about it?" his voice was soft. I shook my head.

Of course I couldn't tell him. Ever since the CSM party last Saturday all I've been thinking about was how I was going to tell the flock about my expiration date. There never seemed to be the right time and I know it wasn't going to go away, but I was still in denial of the truth. That I was going to die soon.

Everyday, my life was slowly slipping out of my fingers, and try as I may, I could never be able to hold on tight enough. I also didn't want to die without having a few more good memories with the flock that I could take to the grave, because God knows I didn't have much of them. I've been trying desperately not to think about any of this, to focus on my studies, but it just keeps popping up in my head, thus my PMS-y mood.

And even if it were something I could tell him, I'd obviously go to Fang instead.

Luckily, he didn't bother me about it anymore.

He lifted up my chin to make me look into his eyes. "You know, you and I haven't hung out in a long time…" he started, a sweet smile forming on his face.

I sighed, exhausted. "Zach, I have no time-"

"No, we should go out next Friday. Just you and me. I'll pay for the ice cream since I'm such a gentleman," I rolled my eyes exaggeratedly, "And I'll teach you how to do the full cab on the skateboard."

I raised an eyebrow. "A full cab? What's that?"

"A Caballerial." He said, but when he saw my still perplexed look he just sighed and said, "I'll show you then. You'd probably get it in a few minutes too." He grumbled. I beamed smugly at him.

He waited for me to finish packing my things and just when we were at the door frame of our classroom, he turned to face me and asked, "You wouldn't mind if I borrow your Biology book, would you?"

"'Course not. Here." I twisted my torso and began digging around in my backpack, looking for the textbook.

When I brought it out, he stared at it with the same look he gave my notebook as he observed the wrinkles, dog ears, tears, folds and all it's dilapidated glory. I huffed.

Shoving him playfully into the hall, I chuckled, "Shut up, it has character!"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

As I stacked my textbooks in my locker, _all_ of which had character, my pocket vibrated irritably. I grabbed my cell phone and pressed answer. "Yeah?"

But it wasn't _my_ cell phone. It was the Jeb phone. (heh heh, the Jeb phone)

I should have been used to it by now, having answered dozens of his calls, but hearing people refer to me as 'Jeb' still scared me silly, afraid that they'd found out what I was up to and were going to send me to jail or something. (You can go to jail for that, right?)

During the time I hacked into Jeb's computers and somehow connected his phone and all its information to the phone he gave me, I had disabled the receiver. Doing so gave me the ability to listen in on all his calls without myself being heard in the background. Like, I could talk and breathe loudly and even mimic Jeb while I listened in on a conversation and I wouldn't be heard by either Jeb or the caller.

Yes, I'm brilliant. Hold the applause. (Though I still don't know how I did it.)

99% of Jeb's calls were all about business. Hospital this, CSM meeting that. An appointment here, a reminder _about_ an appointment there. I never risked dropping the call in the middle of a conversation – just in case something important or relevant came up – but I was very, _very_ tempted to. You don't know how boring scientific mambo jambo is until you've listened to about 23 conversations pertaining to it. Trust me.

That 1% you're wondering about is Jeb's friend. (I know right! Jeb…has a_ friend?_ Let's all gather around a campfire with our smores, people; this is gonna be gripping.) He text messages Jeb constantly like they were pubescent teenagers and he's called once in the past regarding the CSM party last Saturday. They always had very tedious and monotonous discussions but hey, they were better than conversations about chiasmata and tetrads.

I leaned against my locker as Jeb greeted back Logan and they chatted about your usual stuff – hey, how's it going, nothing much, wanna meet up soon, I'll check my schedule, etc.

"Great party last Saturday, by the way. Thanks for-"

"Oh, don't thank me. Thank Val and the kids, they organized everything." Jeb replied, and my ears perked up at the mention of my family.

"I see… Speaking of the kids, where was Max? I saw her a few times with that dark-haired boy but often she was AWOL. Was she actually there at the party?" Logan asked, and the moment I heard my name I froze and stood ramrod straight. And now they were talking about _me_…

"Yes, she was. You left before her speech, and a good speech at that."

"I can't believe I missed her!" Logan exclaimed suddenly and I jumped in surprise. "So…how is she? Did you get to talk to her or did you chicken out again?"

"Nah, she was always moving around; I couldn't catch her. But she's fine, I guess. Maybe even happy." Jeb said and chuckled. Why he chuckled, I don't know. Was it weird for me to be happy? "You know, seeing her in a dress and looking so mature made me realize how grown up she is…" he continued and I made a face. _What the hell?_ He had no right to pretend to sound so _fatherly_. It made my blood boil.

"Don't go all sentimental on me now." Logan teased.

"Well, she _looked_ mature but I later found out that she was playing in the backyard, in the snow, with her flock. Can you believe that?" I grinned. "It feels like we're 6 years into the past again!"

There was a small pause before Logan spoke up. "It's been so long, huh?"

"It has. I know you probably don't understand but I'm nervous to see if she'd make it any longer." At those words, I gasped. The blood boiling just a few seconds ago turned cold, freezing in my veins. _Oh my God. Did he know about my expiration date? _"6 years already… Do you think she'll make it to 20? I want to see her grown up, I really do, but I don't think she'll last that long." Jeb continued, sounding so sad and upset that I felt I could feel it too.

_Don't think she'll last that long…? What does he mean?_

"Jeb, don't think stuff like that. She made it to 16 for a reason, she's going to make it to 20. And 30 and 40 and she's going to _live_ life." Logan reprimanded, his voice stern.

"But she wasn't designed for something like that! I feel like any moment she's just going to drop dead. How the hell will I explain that to her family?" Jeb, on the other hand, sounded frantic and worried which got me thinking about the consequences of my death again. _Oh my goodness he knows he knows he knows!_

"Look, I can't imagine how nervous you are but she was supposed to expire last year and she didn't, so be thankful and just keep trying your best on the project, okay? I don't care if she wasn't designed for something like that; there's always something." He continued to scold.

_I was supposed to die last year? _There wasn't enough oxygen in the air. I started to hyperventilate.

There was a long pause followed by an audible sigh. "Thanks Logan, I needed to hear that. Speaking of the project, I'm getting nowhere; I need more sources." Jeb said, changing the subject. But my mind was still on my expiration date.

"More sources? Why? What's going on?" Another pause. Some shuffling sounds in the background. "Look, I've got to go. Tell me all about it on Saturday."

They exchanged goodbyes but I had already hung up.

It took me a few minutes to control my breathing before I leaned against my locker again, wiping away the moisture at the corners of my eyes.

What. The. Hell. Was. _That._

I wasn't designed to grow old? In fact, I'm supposed to already be _dead?_ Did they know I had my expiration date already or were they basing it on research?

Jeb knew so much about this and I didn't even know…

After a few more minutes of trying and failing miserably at sorting out my thoughts, I blinked a few times and took a deep breath. Before I could worry about all this, I had to get home.

Straightening my blouse and necktie, I started running down the halls, still clutching the cell phone in my hand. I was in such a hurry, with my thoughts in a knot, that I didn't even realized someone else was running down the hall towards the direction I'd just come from as we collided.

The other person fell to the ground on her butt, swearing colorful words that I'd ground Angel for if she ever said them. I merely staggered back 2 steps and rubbed at my shoulder, groaning.

I reached a hand downwards. "I'm sorry, I-" I started to say, but was cut off by a loud piercing shriek.

"_WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, FREAK!_" Oh, if I had a penny for every time someone called me that.

After realizing who it was, I drew back my hand sharply and started to turn, completely uncaring about the other person's welfare. Let her get a bruise the size of Africa on her bum for all I care.

Too bad I didn't turn fast enough.

"Oh, it's you." She was still struggling to get up, no thanks to her heeled ankle boots.

I gave her the universal "Uhh yeah…sure, whatever" look and started to turn again when she spoke up. Again.

"You're Nick's sister, right?"

…

Okay, that was the stupidest, most unintelligible thing I'd ever heard. Sure, we were new students, but everyone knew who we were and everyone _definitely_ knew I was Nick's sister. (You can't imagine how many "Are you Nick's girlfriend?" questions I got the first day of school. Funny they were so eager to find out I was his sister. Even funnier I really _am_ his girlfriend.)

Steph Adams, cheerleader with a despicable attitude to match, was even my classmate. (Unfortunately.) Of course she would know we were siblings, unless she fell off the top of a cheer pyramid or whatever they're called and lost her memory, or something just as wonderful.

So for obvious reasons I gave the "You're just _that_ stupid, aren't you?" look and started to walk away. Why I wasn't spewing sarcastic remarks left and right you ask? Well because Steph wasn't worth it.

Just when I was a few feet away from her, she shouted. "He's gay isn't he?" but I just kept on walking, wondering how pissed everyone already was for making them wait.

"Excuse me, I said, he's gay isn't he?" _She won't shut up, will she?_

I huffed and spun around on my heel. Maybe f I answered her she would disappear. "My brother?" I pretended to sound puzzled.

"Who else?" she snapped, her voice full of attitude as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Uhh…no. Who gave you that idea?" God, I can't believe I'm putting up with this stupidity.

"Well, the fact that he hasn't been _mine_. I mean, who _couldn't_ resist me?"

And in that moment you didn't know how hard it was for me to bite back my explosion of laughter threatening to escape my lips.

I really couldn't believe I was having one of those moments. Those cliché television show moments when the stuck-up bitch confront the girlfriend/best friend/sister (lol, I was all of those).

My life was complete. I could die happy. (Note to sarcasm.)

"People who've got brains, maybe…" I muttered under my breath. To Steph, I shrugged. "Sorry Steph, he's just not into harlots. Give my brother some slack; he wouldn't stoop _that_ low." Her face twisted for a second as she scanned her mental dictionary, which wasn't that big I bet, for the word harlot. (I'm internally applauding myself for having such prodigious verbosity. See what I did there?) When her mind finally processed what I just said, her face turned a very unattractive shade of scarlet. I continued. "And you know, he happens to have a girlfriend," Oh crap. "Back in Arizona." I hastily added. Nice save.

She strode forward on her short legs until she was directly on front of me.

That was a bad decision on her part because I was a head taller than her and she had to look up at me. Her face up close wasn't even pretty. Wrinkles on her forehead and in the space between her eyebrows were evident as she tried to glare at me, her face still ruby red.

I, on the other hand, watched with half-lidded eyes and a bored expression on my face, waiting for her to get on with it. Just let her explode on you and go home. That way, she wouldn't have to bother you with her heart-aching insults and oh so vicious glares of doom tomorrow. There were enough problems in my life and I had no time for petty high school problems.

"Honey, once he's had a taste of me, there won't be no girlfriend in Arizona."

Oh gross. I had a baby barf in my throat right there.

I snorted, making her blush even harder. Aww, look. I can make her blush. "Steph, if you haven't noticed, not everyone's tripping over you. Tripping over your oversized head, maybe. I mean, there's James-"

"Psh!" She threw her head back and laughed. "_Pu-lease._ I have standards. Okay, even if he _did_ want me, there's no way I'd ever go out with that fucking _blind_-"

Hold up.

Bitch did _not_ just say that.

Completely wiped of my formerly uninterested expression, I pushed her harshly towards the lockers and stood over her, trapping her under my glare. My fists clenched and unclenched as an overwhelming desire to rearrange her face washed over me.

"Don't you _ever_ talk about James that way, or my family for that matter. Got it?" I snapped, my eyes burning into hers. She cower against the lockers, back pressed hard into a combination lock (I hope she gets a bruise there too) and nodded once slowly, looking stiff and robotic.

Man, was I a hypocrite. I tell you she doesn't bother me and now here I am, seconds away from giving her customized plastic surgery.

But she drew the line right there when she insulted Iggy.

She could taunt me, and gossip about me and bully me with her half-assed insults for all I care, but no one talks about my family like that. It was the same for all of us. Iggy was fine with the all blind jokes, but if someone insulted anyone else in the flock, no doubt would that someone be in the hospital by now.

And to make fun of Iggy was just _low_. He may be blind but he's just as fast, just as smart, just as able, and just as awesome as anyone who could see. Actually, he was probably even better than the rest of us.

After staring Steph down for a few more seconds, the more rational part of my brain told me to stop. (No jokes about how big that rational part is, people.)

I was seconds away from going on, intent on making her leave bawling her eyes out with not a single shred of self-esteem left in her, but my conscience, my real conscience and not the Voice, or Angel or anything else, told me that I shouldn't bring myself to her level. I should try to be the bigger person. (Figuratively of course)

Yeah, I know I already snapped, but I shouldn't allow myself to be bothered by her anymore than I already did.

I gave her one last parting look of disgust and walked away, back to the direction I was heading.

I could've said more. I was going to say more. I have a million comebacks up my sleeve, a thousand of them pertaining to _just_ her face, but surely she could understand what I meant with just that sentence. I pitied her enough with her perpetual bitchiness that should be studied by scientists because it was unbelievable how anyone could be so…so _mean_ (there goes my superfluity of words) and she wasn't something to waste my time on.

As I pushed through the double doors of the school, I thought back to Steph's reaction to my _err_…outburst. Would she tell others that I blew up like that? I thought about Steph and willed her to keep her big collagen-infused lips shut. She was definitely scared; I could see it in her glassy (probably from tears) eyes. Hopefully she had a humongous pride like Aiden and will keep this all to herself.

**- - - - - -O- - - - -**

It's amazing how much the influence of your family can affect how you feel. One second I was harboring 'I hate the world so piss off' feelings and just a few minutes with Gazzy, Iggy and Fang immediately got me smiling.

Well, that was until I found out what Gazzy was hiding.

Did you know that the infamous 9-year old avian-human hybrid, known for his immature antics as well as his perfectly-delivered spinning kicks was crushing on one of his classmates? And more importantly, that he was being _bullied_ in school?

That little tidbit of shocking information brought to you by Maximum Ride.

You could just imagine my reaction once the news reached my ears.

"_Gazzy, why didn't you tell the teacher or something!_" I reprimanded him, unconsciously fingering the jacket slung on the ride cymbal of his drum set. A jacket that was worn 3 weeks ago when Gazzy went to the arcade with his friends.

I dropped it with a frown and continued to pace the length on front of his drum set in the corner of his room. Well, _long-forgotten drum set _because he's given up on lessons months ago.

Yeah, the flock weren't quitters, but according to Gazzy, the chances of learning the drums were just as likely as seeing Fang in a rainbow jumpsuit singing the Cuppycake Song. (BAD MENTAL IMAGE. BAD MENTAL IMAGE!)

I bit back a laugh and composed a poker face again.

Iggy, who was sprawled on Gazzy's bed like he owned it, and Fang, who was slumped in Gazzy's desk chair, twirling a pen in his fingers, both looked up me at the same time and raised an eyebrow.

_Now how did they know?_

I rolled my eyes and strode forward towards Gazzy, who was seated on the edge of his bed, facing me. I picked up one of his notebooks from the floor – scratch that – his friend's notebook that Gazzy borrowed so he could copy notes, and placed it on his desk.

"Seriously Gazzy, you shouldn't let them bully you. I mean, you didn't do anything wrong to them, did you?" I questioned.

"What? _No!_"

"Then I sugge-"

"As much as I'd _hate_ to interrupt this very important, very imperative conversation," Iggy said, raising his body on his elbows from the bed to face us, "We should get to the matter at hand." He sounded serious. I looked directly at Gazzy and nodded.

"Gazzy…" His tone was flat, and then… "Oh my _goodness!_ What's her name? How does she look? Tell me everything!" He squealed. He friggin' _squealed_, and I'm telling you it didn't sound normal.

Iggy's voice was smooth, low and well, _boyish_, so speaking an octave higher than normal really creeped me out.

"Oh lookie Fnick, our little Gasman is all grown up!" Iggy continued on, faking an enthusiastic, peppy demeanor as he got up into a sitting position and started clapping his hands.

Fang rolled his eyes, and without having to look, he threw the pen towards Iggy and it hit his head right smack in the middle of his forehead. And doubtless, I knew I heard Fang mutter under his breath, "Pedophile…"

While Iggy blustered on about how painful that was and that Fang should apologize, I strode towards the side of the bed and raised my voice above his. "Iggy, shut it. Forget Gazzy's crush, your _brother_ is being _bullied_. Does that not _bother_ you at all?"

Iggy make an annoyed sound in the back of his throat. "Well what are _you_ even doing _here_ in the first place?" he retorted back, rolling on his side to stand up. "This is Man Time and the last time I checked you had neither sideburns nor any bal-"

Fang chose this time to interrupt our argument. "Iggy, chill. Max is right." He said, trying to step in between the 2 of us as we went nose to nose. As much as I'd like to say I looked like a total bamf staring down at Iggy, I actually had to stare _up_ because he was so frickin' tall. A few inches taller than Fang and that's saying something.

"Of course _you'd _side with Max, she's you frickin' _girlfriend!_" You know what I said about Iggy being awesome a while ago? Yeah, I'm thinking of taking that back.

Then Iggy and I started shouting at each other while Fang was trying to get us to stop. Gazzy was a little ways away, shouting too.

"WELL THEN FANG AND I WILL TALK TO THE KID!" _Iggy._

"NO YOU WILL NOT 'TALK' TO THE KID! LET HIM SETTLE IT HIMSELF OR LET HIM TELL THE TEACHER!" _Me._

"WHY IS EVERYONE SHOUTING? I CAN'T HEARD MYSELF THINK!" _Gazzy._

"Guys, stop." _Fang._

"OH HOW WOULD YOU KNOW MAX? YOU PROBABLY DON'T EVEN-" _Iggy._

"I'M A GIRL, IGGY! I KNOW HOW GIRLS THINK AND WHO BETWEEN THE TWO OF HAS A SIGNIFICANT OTHER?" _Me._

"I DO NOT HAVE A CRUSH ON MY CLASSMATE I JUST SAID SHE WAS CUTE AND THAT'S IT!" _Gazzy._

"Iggy _please_-" _Fang._

"OH THAT HARDLY COUNTS! THE BOTH OF YOU WERE ALREADY DRIPPING YOUR LOVESICK HORMONES ALL OVER THE PLACE SINCE YOU WERE KIDS, I WAS PRACTICALLY DROWNING IN THEM!" _Iggy._

"KIDS DON'T HAVE 'LOVESICK' HORMONES, YOU IDIOT!" _Me._

"-NOT A CRUSH STOP SAYIN LIES AND PLEASE STOP SHOUTING MY BRAIN'S TURNING TO MUSH!" _Gazzy._

"Max, I think we should just-" _Fang._

_Brrrruuuuuutttt!_

Then silence.

We all froze in our stances as I took in our positions, with Iggy's hand gripping my arm roughly and my right hand clenched, poised just on front of Iggy's stomach. Fang was pushing back Iggy with one hand while the other hand was clamped onto my shoulder.

"Fang…" Iggy asked cautiously, "Was that you?"

"Of course it wasn't me." He replied back, scandalized.

A second later, we all exchanged wide-eyed looks (well, Fang just looked slightly alarmed and Iggy didn't exactly get to see the looks on our faces) as we figured out who our culprit was.

We all turned our heads slowly to face Gazzy, who was standing a few feet away from us, giggling like a maniac with a mischievous smirk on his face.

Ah, _crap._

In an instant, we all started pushing and shoving each other for escape, holding our breaths with no courtesy or manners whatsoever.

Iggy, Fang and I were standing beside the bed right before the door, so we all climbed up the bed and clawed each other to get to the other side.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Fang push Iggy hard in the chest, making him fall over the edge of the bed. Just when I thought I'd almost made it to the other end, Iggy's long fingers wrapped around my ankle and pulled me down. I grabbed onto Fang's arm and he went down with me.

After a few minutes of fighting each other to get out of Gazzy's room, we eventually ran out of breath while we wrestled to cross over. And that was the moment I accidentally took a big whiff of the air – let me tell you: Gazzy makes the worst scent you could _possibly_ think of smell like a touch of heaven or something.

My eyes swam with tears and I made a loud hacking sound as vomit rose up in my throat.

Oh God, I've never smelled anything so _horrible_ in my life…

I could tell Fang and Iggy were dying too as they also made hacking sounds on the floor beside me. We eventually got to make it over Gazzy's bed and we were directly on front of the door, but I was too busy covering my nose and trying to keep in the mashed potatoes and grilled pork from dinner to make a crawl for it.

"Max…Fang…go on…without me…" Iggy said in between garbled coughing while he crawled weakly right beside my legs.

And just then, Ella decided to barge in, opening the door wide open, letting in an overwhelming breeze of fresh, clean, _fragrant_ air…

Bless her soul.

"Sweet Jesus…" Iggy panted, crawling forward a little more to hug Ella's leg. He looked up at her with unseeing eyes. "Ella, I owe you my life." He said, in all seriousness.

"Hey!" Gazzy said, offended. "No high five?"

"Gazzy, you'd probably put all the people into a coma before they could high five you." Fang said, getting onto his knees.

"Wait, What're you guys-" Ella stared at the 3 of us in confusion before the stench hit her too. "EW GAZZY!"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The cherry on top of my bi-polar day was when Fang asked if he could sleep with me in my room tonight.

Oh _please_, get your minds out of the gutter, people. We wanted to watch a movie.

We'll we _did _want to watch a movie but after the fist few scene it became less appealing, and we eventually lowered the volume to one bar.

We talked about the most random things just like we used to, such as our game of soccer awhile ago during PE (Fang is secretly plotting revenge plans against Douche bag David – you know the one – for 'accidentally' tripping me during the game; I just know it), some mainstream song we were trying to decipher the meaning of (because music nowadays were shallow and redundant if you ask me), and you know, just other stuff.

"Oh hey, did you know Mitzi has a crush on Bris?" I said randomly, pressing myself closer to his body for warmth. Even if I was wearing sweat pants instead of shorts, was under the thick fluffy covers of my bed, and the heater was turned on, I was still freezing my butt off.

I bent my knee and lay my leg over Fang's legs, causing the sole of my cold foot to brush against his knee. Noticing Fang jerk lightly, I giggled.

"So Mitzi told you?" He asked, his eyes on the flat screen TV across the room, sounding in no way interested about Mitzi and Bris. He also seemed to be watching the movie, but just because we were too comfortable to move to reach for the remote. I could bet you most of his attention was on his arms around me, one around my shoulders and the other tracing patterns on my arm across my stomach.

I knew _I_ was mostly paying attention to his body next to mine.

"No, I figured it out myself." I grinned, watching the actors on screen exchange gifts for some special occasion. Christmas maybe? Though just a few scenes ago they were roaming the scorching hot streets of sunny Colorado.

"It's kind of stupid really. I mean, I don't even think she realizes it herself but she's crazy for him! And I've gotta feeling he likes her too." I continued, "Man, they're blind…"

At those words, Fang started shaking beside me. I was confused at first, but when I turned my head to look at him, I realized he was laughing silently, just chuckling to himself.

"What's so funny?" I raised an eyebrow.

It took him a few seconds to stop shaking/laughing silently, and when he finally calmed down her looked down at my head on his chest and said with a small smile, "You."

What did _I_ do?

Confusion, anger and little bit of hurt swirled inside of me and I turned my head away from him, trying to ignore him and forget how good his fingers felt on my arm.

It didn't take Fang long to figure out how I felt.

"I'm sorry, Max. Let me explain." He said, trying to draw me closer, which was impossible. There was no way we could've gotten any closer when there was no space at all between us.

I was raising my fist, ready to punch him, when he said, "I meant to say, I found you funny because if you didn't realize your words, that was exactly what happened with us and that was exactly how we felt." His voice apologetic and kind with a tinge or laughter in it.

I hate it when I'm on a roll, anger coursing through my veins, and Fang just extinguishes the heat in a second. Man, I've gotten soft.

Instead, the anger was replaced with embarrassment, my face turning so cherry red that I buried it into his chest to avoid eye contact. "It wasn't _that_ funny…" I scoffed. "I mean, I wasn't _crazy_ for you or anything…" My face could probably cook eggs and bacon at the rate my blush was going.

Fang just laughed silently again.

We continued to talk a little more about trivial things – school, friends and other conversational topics like TV shows and the latest movies, but when we reached the topic of our Investigatory Project in Science class, my mind immediately snapped to Jeb and his friend's conversation about their project a while ago.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. Another wave of thoughts washed through my head.

I didn't want to think about it. Because the more I thought about it, the harder it is to keep a brave face.

In a way, I have already accepted my future, or rather, _no_ future of living any longer than 16. Recently, I foraged through mom's old stuff, back when she still worked at the School, and found nothing on expiration dates. Either she already left when they created them or they kept that information away from her.

And I lost even more hope this afternoon. Jeb's the one person who would probably know the most about what was happening and how to fix things but even he was clueless. He didn't know I was dying and he doesn't know what to do when it happens.

So what now?

All I could hope for was understanding and comfort from the flock when I broke the news. And a few more memories with the flock before it happens.

Thinking about all of this, I suddenly had the idea of telling Fang about my death right now.

Who better than to know first about my expiration date than my soulmate, right?

And maybe if Fang knew the truth, it would somehow make it all better.

Better that my family expected it than to suddenly drop dead one day and let them forever wonder what happened to me.

In the comfortable silence that enveloped us, I took another deep breath, preparing myself.

This was it. I was going to do this. There was no backing down.

Letting Fang know about this was vital. If I couldn't bring up the courage and trust him, then life wasn't worth living anyways. Fang's my best friend and he was going to make it alright.

"Hey Fang?" I started.

"Yeah?" Normally he wouldn't have had to talk, but my head was resting on his chest beneath his.

"Fang, I…" And then, "Wait. _Since when were those 2 in Vegas?_" My eyebrows scrunched together in confusion as I watched the 2 main characters in the movie walk down the Las Vegas Strip hand in hand.

_Shit!_ I got side-tracked. That just goes to show you how long my attention span was. Or maybe I was just stalling. Take your pick.

I felt Fang shrug from underneath me. "Pay attention, Max. Their family kicked them out."

"_Really?_ But they weren't they just in the mountains?" I exclaimed.

"They left." I did a mental facepalm. No shit, Fang. Why the hell else would they be frolicking like 8-year olds while stealing kisses on front of Caesars's Palace if they _didn't_ leave Colorado?

"Gods, this movie sucks. I mean,_ everybody_ knows the characters only go to Vegas when they've nowhere else to go. How very _un-original_."

"'Perfect place for anyone to either get married, pregnant, drunk or high." Fang agreed.

Another wave of silence ensued as we watched the main characters gamble in the casinos.

_Okay, Max… You can do this… Just take the plunge and_ make _Fang understand. He'll always be on your side._

Max Dropping the Bomb on Fang: Take Two.

"Hey Fang…?" I tried again, my voice wavering towards the end. Man, was I a coward…

"Yeah?"

"I-I need to…to umm…" I started to stutter, which was so un-like me. "Umm…"

"Max…? You know you can just spit it out, right?" Fang said, and I could hear the gentle reassurance in his voice.

I was about to start again, but when I opened my mouth, a _huge_ lump of _whatever_ clogged my throat and I couldn't speak. I wasn't brave or strong enough to tell him just now.

I know you're all probably pulling off all your hair by now 'cause of my stubbornness, but do you know how difficult it is? Do you understand how painful it is to tell the people you love that you were dying?

Imagine having a terminal illness like cancer, something no treatment could cure and no reliable help from anyone, and you had to tell your friends, your family and your soulmate the truth. It's not easy. Not one bit. Because while everyone around you is enjoying life and finding the meaning of it, do you realize that you only have a few weeks, days, hours, minutes and seconds to realize the meaning of _losing_ your life?

I'm scared. But I won't admit that to anyone, not now anyway. The flock has seen me scared. In fact, they were the only people who've ever really seen the fear I feel. But this time, I didn't want them to carry the burden and worry just yet. Not yet.

"So Fang…" I cleared my throat, "I was thinking maybe we could spend the whole Friday off. You know, with the flock…" My voice trailed off.

Fang was quiet for a few moments and my heart started to beat erratically, waiting for his answer. Who knows what he would say. Would he figure things out? He was always able to read me, even when I wasn't looking into his eyes…

"I think that's a great idea," he said slowly, still musing, "So who'd you steal it from?"

I huffed, but not without a small smile on my lips, thumping my fist hard against his chest. "Shut up."

"But really, why the sudden vagary?"

"Since when did you know the meaning of vagary?" I shot back. He only rolled his eyes.

"Well I don't need an excuse. I'm Maximum 'Charging Off' Ride, remember? I do whatever I want and _I_ think we should bond as a flock." I said, turning my head upwards to smile at him.

"Why is it that whenever people call you that, you deny it, but it's perfectly fine for you to call yourself that?"

"Quit changing the subject!" I said, avoiding his question. "I'm serious. When was the last time we all got together and did something fun?"

"The CSM party."

Oh. Right.

"Well, okay. Fine. But like, did _you_ know Gazzy was being bullied? It's like I don't even know them anymore! Who knows what secrets the girls have that they haven't confided in me, and I'm _their_ gender!" I exclaimed, talking so fast I was practically frothing in the mouth. "I'd be _so_ offended if they went to _Total_ for advice…."

Fang was quiet again, thinking. (He does that a lot, doesn't he?) After a few seconds, he sighed deeply and kissed me on my temple, keeping his head close to mine.

"You're right. We've all be distant."

I smiled sadly to myself. Happy that he agreed, sad that the fact was true. I really wonder what happened to us…

"Even you." I said. "I owe you, Fang. You've been putting up with me for so long and I haven't been making time for you. I'm sorry." And Fang knew I didn't apologize very often so he must've known how sorry I was.

"Max, its fine. If you want to make it up to me _so_ bad," I rolled my eyes at this, "Then let's go out soon. On a real date. Not just sneaking 7 minutes with each other during a party or in between classes." He said, grumbling the last part.

"Yeah. The last time you tried stealing a kiss from me in the halls, I almost fell into a trashcan when you pushed me off when that freshman rushed by." And it wasn't funny. At all.

I ignored the fact that I could feel him smile. "Sorry 'bout that…" his voice trailed off and I knew that was the end of that conversation. I was just relieved he didn't notice my bluff. "Hey, weren't they just in Vegas?"

I turned my attention back to the TV and noticed that the 2 main characters were back in their house again. Huh. "Pay attention, Fang. They left." I said in my 'duh' voice.

"Wait. Why did he _leave_ her? I thought they were dating?"

"Oh, the dude's being melodramatic. He's leaving his family because he thinks he's breaking them apart and all that self-righteous jargon." I rolled my eyes.

"That…is…the…_stupidest_ bullshit I've _ever _heard." He said slowly, and even though I couldn't see his face I could imagine his 'WTF face' from his tone. "Leaving is just going to break the girl and once she's crushed, she won't be able to support her family. She can't take care of 4, now 5 if you include that Mr. Perfect freak, other people without him. They _need_ each other." He said so surely of himself, I almost laughed because he actually paid so much attention to the movie.

"That's exactly what I was thinking."

"Jeez." He said, exasperated, "Writers these days…"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

So…it wasn't that bad was it? 'Cause I feel like I keep jumping from scene to scene and some of them don't even connect, even if they actually do. Okay, now I'm not even making sense. Sorry also for any grammar mistakes.

Please review to tell me what you think! :D I'll try and go back to my old style of writing (well it seemed like it was different…) and I'll try to give more time to this and Camp Northwoods.

AN1: Virtual cool bandaid to the first person who guesses what I was referring to in the last scene. ;)

AN2: In reference to cool bandaid – my friends and I are collecting cool bandaids. Not plain flesh colored bandaids but bandaids with cartoon characters and different shaped and stuff. Life long goal? Bacon strip bandaid. Look it up. And if any of you actually got them? Lock your doors; I'll kidnap them from you.

AN3: Who's read The Lost Hero and Clockwork Angel? Rick Riordan is a genius and Cassandra Clare had me laughing the whole time.

AN4: OH MY GOODNESS I CAN NOT FIND THE 3RD MAXIMUM RIDE MANGA ANYWHERE! :'( My heart is broken. So to all those people who live in the Philippines (Metro Manila area only please) and you happen to see it in a bookstore, TELL ME. Yes, I follow it. I like seeing the flock in picture, so sue me.

AN5: Sorry I have a kajillion ANs. :|

4-5 more chapters until the second climax!

I am so so sorry about that. :| I had to find a way to develop the scene, and the start of this fic was written without a plot so I had to work with what I had.

Now go review and tell me you've got the bacon bandaid/you know where in the Philippines I can find the 3rd MR manga/what you thought about the 2 books or maybe you could just tell me what you thought of this chapter.

Up to you guys.

Peace out!

.: Tiffany :.


	21. Distractions Are The Cure

Aren't you guys proud of me? :O

What suddenly brought up another update in 5 days? Well, I dunno either!

Just to let you all know guys, if when I'm already finished with this story and you're only just reading it now, don't feel afraid to review it! Would you just feel the warm fuzzies when you're like, 20 and you suddenly received an e-mail about a review to your old stories? I know I would.

Thank you **fireflies371**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **5253Racer** and **DancingintheRayne** for reviewing! You guys are awesome.

Hopefully I can get more reviews with this chapter. Enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Come Thursday, the unthinkable happened.

As in, never in the 16 years of my life has this ever happened to me for no apparent reason. Well, that's what I said about nosebleeds but even those happen to ordinary people out of the blue.

We were halfway through Finite Math, the second to the last period of the day, when sudden a wave of dizziness washed over me like a tidal wave.

It caught me off guard. The sensation was stronger that a perfectly delivered punch to the face, making me gasp audibly as my pen fell from my grasp. It was so strong it truly would've knocked me off my feet if I weren't sitting down. Luckily, the whole class was babbling and droning on in a buzzing hum that people didn't notice it at all.

It was like a truckload of cement was dumped over my chest, making it impossible to breathe. I continued to hyperventilate from the pressure on my chest, trying to calm my breathing while covering my mouth so as to not draw attention. I picked up my pen from the ground mindlessly, and blinked a few times to try and focus on the lesson.

_Why was this happening to me?_

The words on the board magnified and blurred in my vision, swirling and nauseating me further, and breathing into my hand just made my palm all sweaty. _Oh God…_

Turning to Plan B, I closed my eyes and steadied myself, clutching onto my desk to shake the haze away, but I could feel my head sway from side to side and by now my throat started to close up too. This wasn't helping.

I stood up abruptly, not even looking around to check if anybody was staring at me, and walked towards the teacher's table.

I knew I looked stupid. Even clad in _flat_-soled Chucks I swayed from side to side like a drunkard, using some of my classmates' tables for support to reach the front. I was blinking all the way to keep the blur back, and when I reached Ms. Reeves, I needed to lean against her table for support.

"Ms. Reeves, may I please go to the lavatory?" I asked with all the politeness I could muster, rushing all the words in one breath.

"Sure, go for it." She said, probably thinking I couldn't hold _it_ in anymore by my pained expression.

I could feel some eyes on my back now – especially Fang and Iggy's – but I walked swiftly towards the door without looking back, trying not to sway.

Once I was out the door, I broke into a sprint down the empty halls, running practically blindly due to the fuzziness of my vision. I was zigzagging; running one second in the direction of the blood red lockers and in the next, almost ramming into a vending machine.

I felt like I was someone else. I've never felt so sick in my life, and running never felt so painful and heavy. I didn't even have time to wonder or curse the universe for this sudden feeling. I knew it was a poor decision, but I needed to reach the nearest bathroom. I needed to sit down on the floor and take deep breaths and splash my face with water. This _can't_ be happening to me.

It felt like forever, but I knew I wasn't even that far because I haven't even reached a corner yet. My legs seemingly transformed to lead and it took a lot of effort for me to raise them and take a step forward. Each step was torture; slow and thick like I was trapped in quicksand.

The blur in my eyes started to turn dark around the edges, and even when I blinked, it wouldn't go away.

_NO! Please no! This can't be happening… Not now!_

Finally, with my sweat plastering my hair to my face, my throat closing up and making me choke on my spit, my chest aching with each breath I took, and the blur and darkness mixing like a bittersweet recipe together, my legs gave way and I fell forward.

The last thing I felt was my head crash to the linoleum floor harshly before everything went black.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

'_Too long…'_ Fang thought, _'It's been too long since Max went to the bathroom.'_

Since he knew Max like the back of his hand, he knew something was wrong. Really, _really_ wrong.

He noticed everything. The way she tried to calm herself down in her seat, the way she swayed to get to the front of the classroom, and the subtle rush of her departure when Ms. Reeves allowed her out.

What it was all about? He didn't know.

He suspected it was the Voice bothering her again, giving her a headache like it used to, but he could still be wrong. Max always tried to play off these things like it was nothing. (One of Fang's pet peeves actually)

From across the room, he knew by Iggy's rigid stance that he too had heard her. Had heard her ragged breathing, her racing heart, her stumbles and her rushed exit.

But there was nothing they could do.

Fang could ask if he could also be excused to the lavatory, but doubtless Max really went to the bathroom. She would rush somewhere else. Somewhere no one could see her hurting or breakdown.

Then again, he could always find her. He was somehow connected to her, like he could sense where she might've gone, and he could make sure if she was okay.

He had to make sure she was okay.

Fang closed his notebook with his pen still in between pages and was just about to stand, when another classmate, a girl named Monica, he remembered, stood up as well and did exactly was he was about to do. Go to the bathroom though; not go after Max.

'_Dammit…_' he thought. He was getting really nervous but he would never show it.

Monica exited the classroom and with each second that passed, the more tense his muscles got and the faster he tapped his pen against his desk.

_Tick tock…tick tock…_

His foot began tapping in time with the clock's ticking, audible throughout the classroom despite the chatter all around, that a few of his classmates turned in their seats to shot him annoyed looks.

He turned to stare right back at each of them and they quickly turned their heads away before they could even make eye contact. Of course no one was actually brave enough to set Fang off.

_Tick tock…tick tock…_

His hands clenched and unclenched. He opened his notebook again and tried to distract himself by doodling in his notebook, but the moment he grasped his pen, it snapped in half in his palm, the cheap plastic digging into his skin with the ink spilling all over his notes.

Three people sitting around him turned towards the direction of the sound and stared at the black ink dripping like blood from his fingers, their eyes wide and filled with fear. Fang wasn't the most sociable person in school, and this incident didn't help any.

_Tick tock…tick tock…_

Oh God, he couldn't take it anymore.

He stood up abruptly, his chair's legs scrapping noisily against the floor making everyone look up at him. For a second they all just stared at his tall, intimidating form. Even if he was wearing a white button-down polo, everything about him screamed depth and darkness. Ms. Reeves looked at him expectantly, wondering why he just stood up, when a piercingly horrible scream echoed down the halls and into the classrooms.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Fang wasted no time. While the rest of the class looked at each other and started to whisper and panic, Fang bolted out the door and down the halls with Iggy at his heels.

Up ahead, down the middle of the hall, a throng of students started to crowd around something. Enough to obscure a clear image of the object, but not enough that Fang was able to know that the object on the ground was a body.

A strong sensation of panic spread throughout him, numbing even the tips of his fingers, but he didn't stop running, and in no time Fang and Iggy reached the mass.

He shoved through the crowd with no manners whatsoever, causing some students to shoot him the stink eye. None of that mattered though. The sinking feeling in his gut urged him to just keep going-

And then there she was.

Lying on her side was Max, her blond hair spread around her head like a halo with her mouth slightly open and her eyes shut as though she were sleeping soundly.

One leg was bent over the other and her crumpled uniform slightly rode up her body, with her blouse showing a strip of her flat stomach and her skirt showing a little too much leg.

And even during something this serious, a couple of guys, younger and older, were staring inappropriately. Fang wanted to rip their faces off violently for even staring at her that way at a time like this, and when he glared at them, they all turned away immediately.

People were smart enough not to mess with Cam's older brother.

Whispers and gasps were heard all around but no one was moving. No one was helping her.

_WHY THE FUCK WAS EVERYONE JUST _STARING_ AT HER?_

Stepping forward, Fang bent down and slid his arms under the bend of her knees and beneath her shoulders. When he stood up, he held her to him tightly, as if his hold could protect her for any and all kind of harm. He pushed through the horde of students without a word.

He kept his eyes forward but he could still see the students staring from his peripheral. All around, from the circle of plaid-clad students to doorways of classrooms, people stared at him with mixed expressions of awe, worry, admiration, shock and even jealousy.

Iggy caught up to Fang and touched his shoulder, sending a weak half-smile to try to make things seemed better.

But there was no possible way it could've been better. _Something was _really_ wrong'_, Fang thought as he strode towards the nurse's office grimly.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Waking up was the worst idea I've had since I decided to keep my expiration date from my family.

I felt like I was put into a blender and set to puree. No, I felt worst than that that I can't even describe to you how crap-ish I felt because my mind felt like it exploded with pieces of my brain stuck on the insides of my skull.

I groaned and touched the throbbing part on my head, sitting up slowly to take in my surroundings.

I was on a bed with fluffy, white, cold covers still clad in my uniform. The whole room was completely black except for the lampshade on to my right. The moonlight shining through the balcony doors outlined a couch, a desk and the end of the bed I was on. All of these furniture familiar to me.

I was in my room.

But how in Buddha's name did I get here?

I ran a hand through my hair, my fingers getting stuck in the tangles for a moment, before getting up. I blinked a few times, adjusting my eyes to the lighting before removing my Chucks and heading to the bathroom.

I winced immediately and stumbled back as the bright white lights of the bathroom burned my eyes when I switched them on. After my eyes got used to them, I walked towards the mirror and grimaced.

Man, I looked horrible. And my standards were very low due to being on the run for so long so that was saying something. I was clammy all over and my hair was greasy and unruly. My uniform was crumpled as well.

Without anything to do, I decided to take a shower. A cold, cleansing, _relieving_ shower to wash away my discomfort and unease about the whole situation. I was still in shock about the whole thing and I really didn't have anything else productive to do.

Once I entered the shower, and the cold water hit the top of my head, I sighed audibly.

This shower was the only good thing that's happened to me all day.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Once I was dressed in a comfortable (but not flimsy) tank top and a pair of denim shorts, I went downstairs for dinner. I could hear the flock's voices coming from the entertainment room just before the dining area and I readied myself.

I took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, flicking my damp blondish-brown hair behind my shoulders impatiently before entering.

Once I stepped foot in the doorway, I saw the whole flock plus Ella immediately get to their feet. I raised a hand before they could get any closer.

"Wait. Guys, I'm okay." I reassured them with a smile, acting like I just tripped over a pebble or bumped my head clumsily instead of faint in the school hallway just this afternoon.

"Are you sure? What happened? Fang and Iggy just said you left the classroom in a rush and the next thing they knew was that you were lying in the hallway unconscious! How could that have happened? Was it the Voice? I predict it's the Voice. It always does weird stuff to you and messes your brain up. God, if that ever happened to me, I would just _die_. How do you stand it? How horrible that would've bee-"

"NUDGE!" I scolded, already exasperated from her babble. "I said I'm okay. Don't worry about it." But that last sentence was always never enough for the flock, especially coming from me. Luckily they waited quietly instead of shouting out questions at the same time since they probably knew I was so sick of them. They all looked at me expectantly and I decided that it was probably best to tell them the truth.

Not the truth about my expiration date yet of course but about what just happened to me, because even I couldn't make sense of it. And I was stupid enough not to think of a good excuse during my shower anyway.

I took a seat on the piano bench positioned at the end of the room, which was slightly in between the TV and the couches, forming a 3-point triangle.

"I really don't know guys. One second I was taking down notes in Math, and then this massive headache hits me and everything was suddenly spinning and getting fuzzy. I-I don't know how to really explain it, but my whole body was just…affected by it and I just…I just blacked out." I stuttered a bunch of times, trying to make sense of it myself.

"Was it the Voice again?" Iggy asked.

I shook my head. "No. I haven't heard from the Voice since…since last week. Everything was just swimming and black and _painful_, but there was no voice." I blinked a few times, trying to remember the experience.

"Last week? I thought the Voice stopped talking to you months ago." Nudge asked this time.

"Well it talks to me occasionally. Sometimes at the most random times I almost wet myself." Some of them smiled at this.

"Max, you never just faint for no reason. Is there something wrong? Are you sick?" Fang's voice was filled with so much concern and love as he starting to get up to come over to me. My knee just barely jerked at this. Of all the things he pieces together, it had to be _that_ question…

"Fang, you know we don't get sick." Angel decided to point out so conveniently.

"But then we're back zero. This doesn't explain anything." Fang said, staying where he was standing.

_Why did he have to try so frickin' hard to figure things out?_

"Look, maybe it's because I'm stressed, or tired." I sighed again to emphasize my point, "But I don't want to think about it anymore. I want an explanation just as much as you all do but we're not going to get anywhere. I just want to forget this." I said and made it clear that this discussion was over when I turned around on the bench and position my fingers to begin playing.

But Iggy's booming voice cut me short, his voice clearly trying to get rid of the tension. "Lookie guys! Max's gonna play the piano!" At first I thought his voice was encouraging and eager, but as usual he just had to turn everything into a joke. "What's it gonna be Maxie? Chopsticks?" and then he burst out laughing like it was the funniest thing in the world, the bastard.

But hey, in my defense, the last time he heard me practice were during my first few lessons when we moved in. I never really played the piano on front of anyone before because I would only practice in my room, and it's not like we'll all gather around my piano like it was a campfire to listen to me play.

I was obviously offended by this but I quickly thought of an idea, the perfect opportunity to see who gets the last laugh. It was _so _on.

"Well, I have been practicing…" I said meekly with a hint of hesitance. I heard Iggy whisper to Gazzy, "Turn off the TV. This is gonna be good…" _Ugh._ Had he no faith in me?

"Please Max, don't make me deaf. I'm already blind!" Iggy cried in horror and I clenched my fists to avoid making him lose his head. Everyone laughed at this, well except for Fang, who just smiled.

It seemed like no one was on my side but I was okay with that. If our roles were reversed I knew I would be the one cracking the jokes. That's the flock for ya: always trying to find a way to lower and crush each others self-esteems!

"Iggy, stop being such a jerk." Ella defended, but she was smiling as well. Thanks for the support, sis.

"Fine, fine." He raised his hands palm up in surrender. "So Max, what do you know how to play?"

'_Clair de Lune,'_ I wanted to tell him. But not just yet…

I smiled at them, took a deep breath like I was about to face trial, and put my fingers on the keys…

To start playing Mary Had A Little Lamb.

That's right. The easiest piece the world has ever known, which only required 3 fingers and the keys of C, D and E.

I acted like it took a lot of concentration to play it, biting my bottom lip in frustration to add to the effect even though I could probably play it blind-folded with the other hand making paper origami.

Everyone was laughing so hard, tears were coming out of their eyes. Even Fang was trying very hard to contain himself. When our eyes made contact, he gave me a sad smile, the type that said, 'It's okay, hon. You tried best.' But it was still obvious he found it hilarious.

"Mary…Had… _A Little Lamb?_" Iggy said in between chuckles once I finished.

I pretended to look embarrassed, even though on the inside I was laughing maniacally for thinking of something so evil.

"Well, that was…_interesting_, right?" Angel was looking around, smiling, but I knew very well that she was just trying to be nice. I smiled at her and winked conspiratorially, which just confused her completely.

"Hey Max, next you'll be playing the alphabets!" Iggy taunted again.

We all turned to stare at him and gave him the, 'Did you really just say that?' look and I turned back around to face the piano again.

"No Ig, I can _not_ play the _alphabets_ on the piano…" I said, "But I can play the Hokey Pokey!"

Another round of laughter and giggles erupted as I played the damn song, purposefully pressing the wrong keys and pausing sometimes.

It was ridiculous, and I swear it could have been the death of all of them.

"Extraordinary Bird Kids, Death by Hokey Pokey Piece!"

Oh yeah, that would probably be the weirdest, most random headlines anyone's ever read.

I finished the stupid song, pausing before the last note and pressing it short so that it sounded incomplete and ugly.

Iggy whooped, "Now that's what it's all about!" while they continued to laugh their asses off that if they kept it up, they probably wouldn't even be there anymore in their next x-rays.

This went on for a while and I started to get impatient, so I called their attentions again.

"Wait, wait!" I yelled, "That's not all! I know a better so-"

"Let me guess? The Itsy Bitsy Spider? Jack and Jill? Save it, Max. We've had enough. Don't strain yourself too much." He said with an air of arrogance that it took all my will-power not to beat him senseless right then and there.

My eyes told him, 'Go jump in a lake.' Before I turned back around and put my fingers back to the keys. A smirk started to grow on my face, thinking that my family was probably prepared for more entertainment.

And then I began playing River Flows in You.

It was a very beautiful and slightly popular song that I've been practicing for a while. No, the experimentations from the School didn't suddenly give me the ability to play the piano like a pro. Of course not. But for weeks, I've been memorizing this, playing by sound and perfecting the timing, so right now I knew I sounded like a BA mofo. They didn't need to know that though.

I pressed the keys smooth and slowly during the start, my long fingers spread over the keys to be able to reach them. I stepped on the pedals underneath as well to extend some notes, and not once did I make a single mistake.

Towards the chorus I began to quicken, my fingers hovering fast. I focused more on my left hand as my right wrist moved left and right to hit the sharps and flats. My index, middle and ring finger were tense because this piano has never been played on before, making it a little stiff, that I had to press harder on the keys and the pedal. My pinky finger on my left hand was also getting tired as well but I kept on playing.

Near the end, when the song started to slow down again, I turned my head slightly to see the flock plus Ella, staring at me speechless, gaping with their mouths and eyes the size of Frisbees. Fang's eyes widened half a centimeter but that still translates to disbelief.

And if I could read their minds, It'd probably be something like: asdfghjkl;;!1 ifewgnn023vbnr3sng!

Once I finished the song, playing the last note gracefully, mom came around the corner and told us that dinner was ready, before disappearing the way she came.

Perfect timing.

I stood up and strode on front of the whole flock like I owned the world, a ginormous smirk on my face. As I passed Iggy, I clapped him on the cheek twice, enjoying the glory of my victory.

"Now _that's_ what it's all about, huh Iggy?" I said sweetly and watched in satisfaction as he turned red and rolled his eyes.

Meek and innocent Maximum Ride: 1. Asswipe brother: Knocked Out.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Oh goodness. I felt like _crap_. Again. (Maybe I should think of better things to compare to.)

Crap that's been run over by delivery trucks and stomped on by little children and everything else that makes you feel crappy. And I felt all the more like crap because I felt like crap _twice_ in one day.

I should definitely win an award or something.

I was having a nightmare, conscious that I was twisting and tumbling in my sleep that night, the covers getting tangled in my legs. My now perfectly layered hair stuck to my face with sweat and I felt all hot and sticky despite the chill air. Uncomfortable, I wiped my sweat-covered forehead with the back of my hand and willed myself to wake up.

I was thinking of opening the balcony doors to let some cool fresh air in, but at the same time I was trying not to be bothered by it because I was too tired and groggy to get up, even if it was just a few steps.

_Emptiness… I was alone. Afraid._

The nightmare was still going on.

Had to get up…but I didn't want to get out of bed…

Then, out of the blue, a tiny cough traveled its way from my throat till it was out, leaving an itchy sensation behind.

I inhaled deeply to get rid of it, when another cough erupted from the back of my throat.

Then another.

And then another.

It first started out small, almost inaudible, but as I continued to cough, they became loud and uncontrollable.

I was coughing till it hurts. My stomach ached from the dry heaves and my throat felt dry and raw now.

More coughing.

I was trying to stop myself, but I just couldn't. I just kept going, wondering in the back of my head if anybody could hear me.

Over and over.

When I heaved for another round, a familiar sound in the back of my throat resounded and I felt last night's dinner travel back upstream.

I shot out of bed in an instant, navigating through the dark and jumping over the couch on front of my bed with precision. I even practically rammed down the door to my bathroom.

I strode quickly to the toilet and sank down on my knees even faster as I retched out all the yummy lasagna and fried chicken my mom had made. I felt bad it was going to waste.

I hated the feeling of vomiting. It's just something you can never get used to.

After a couple of more minutes of puking, I remained slumped on the bathroom floor, hugging the toilet for dear life pathetically. I wiped my teary eyes with the back of my hand and took a shaky breath. I felt clammy and shaky and too weak to get up yet.

I was definitely awake now, just a little bit dazed.

My stomach was empty and hallow, my throat had that disgusting sour taste and I felt light-headed. All in all I was very miserable.

I stayed there for a while, pressing the side of my face to the cold tile wall and trying to get my breathing under control.

When I felt that I was finally ready to get up, I closed the toilet seat and steadied myself using the counter. After I flushed the toilet, I gurgled mouthwash a bunch of times to get rid of the aftertaste.

'_Deep breath, Max.'_

I closed my eyes and did so, exhaling sharply. When I opened my eyes again, I stared at myself in the mirror with disgust.

Not only did I feel like crap, I _looked_ like crap.

I had dark circles under my eyes and matching unruly hair to complete the whole 'messed up' look. And no, I wasn't in that 'hot mess' state, I was just a mess.

I splashed my face with cold water and calmly brushed the snarls and tangles out of my hair, slowly trying to make myself look normal again.

When I was done, my arms fell limply to my sides and I crashed onto the toilet seat, drained of energy.

I felt horrible.

First I faint, then the nightmare, then the coughing and now puking. What's next? I'll suddenly have a heart attack and get into a coma?

A shiver ran up my spine and I wrapped my arms around myself. _Now_ I felt cold…

I was trying not to think, but my mind couldn't help but flashback to the dream.

It was so painful to think about, because it all seemed so real.

The flock, every single one of them including Fang, was leaving me.

They betrayed me.

His words, clear as glass echoed inside my head, so sharp it sliced painfully within me. It made me shudder at the thought.

'_Don't bring us down with you. If you're just going to be useless why don't you just stay away. It's better for everyone…'_

I felt my eyes well up with hot tears and I wiped them away swiftly.

In the dream they found out I was dying, and they didn't need me.

They didn't _want_ me.

Did this mean something? Like a premonition?

Now the more I wouldn't be able to tell the flock.

What if this was a vision of the future? I don't think I could live with something like that.

Just thinking about it made me want to vomit again.

I was trying to suppress these thoughts but it just kept popping back up in my head.

How do I make it stop? I can't think about this right now.

As I squeezed my eyes as tight as I could, pushing back that horrible dream, my stomach grumbled and my eyes popped back open.

There. I should eat something.

No way in _hell_ would I be able to go back to sleep, and even if I did, I wouldn't be able to do that with an empty stomach.

I clutched my torso as if it would shut up if I did so and got out of my bathroom. I slipped my cold feet lazily into a pair of Chucks lying around and shrugged on a hoodie before I slipped quietly out of my room and into the hall.

I was as quiet as possible, which wasn't that hard considering I've been doing this all my life, as I crept down the multiple halls still shroud in darkness and sauntered down the stairs, making no sound at all.

Moonlight shone through the glass walls as I walked, slightly brightening the path as I made my way. Not before long, I reached the kitchen and opened just one light, the one over the kitchen counter in the corner.

After a few minutes of scavenging for food, I settled for a simple chicken sandwich. Before you all start gasping in shock, I am perfectly capable doing of the simple things. I just can't use any of the electronics like the blender or the microwave, or even the toaster…

I placed the sandwich on a plate and made my way over to the counter where all the kitchen knives were. I was just about to start cutting my sandwich in half when a wave of paranoia swept through me and I felt something or rather _someone_'s presence in the kitchen.

I went from groggy to alert in 0.38 seconds flat.

My heart started thumping erratically in my chest, possibly trying to break through my ribs. I didn't understand what was happening but I tried to act as casual as I could, continuing with my sandwich.

I didn't know how to explain it, but to put it simply it was like I could _sense_ that there was an intruder and where the intruder was. Kind of like how Iggy knows where things are, I got the sense that the person was standing about 12 feet away from me, across the island, and just slightly off to the door's side.

I needed to time this perfectly. I closed my eyes and counted slowly in my head.

_3…_

_2…_

_1…_

Faster than anything I could think to compare to, I whirled around swiftly and threw the 6 inch knife at the stranger, my aim deadly and directly at his face.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Maybe I'm so giddy because of the fact that I just watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows a few hours ago…

WARNING TO ALL: The part where Ron destroys the hocrux is very scarring. :|

Please R&R lovelies!

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	22. From Dawn Dating to Hide and Seek Horror

Wadup ma home dogs? Okay, EW.

Thank you **fireflies371**, **birdwatched**, **DancingintheRayne**, **SeaSaltChocolate** and **SharpestSatire** for reviewing! :)

Sorry it took quite a while and things will take quite a while again because my finals are next week so…wish me luck!

I'm not quite satisfied with this chapter but I think it's all good. Enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Faster than anything I could think to compare to, I whirled around swiftly and threw the 6 inch knife at the stranger, my aim deadly and directly at his face._

-and Fang caught the stubby hilt with precision, the blade just a few inches from the bridge of his nose.

I immediately dropped my sandwich on the counter and rushed to him.

"_Oh my God!_ I didn't mean- I thought you were someone else and-"

"Nice aim." Was all he said as he gave me a small smile and set the knife down on the marble counter. I rushed to his side.

"Nice catch." I said a little breathlessly. My heart was beating so fast, I felt that there were going to be bruises on my ribs tomorrow. "Fang, I really wasn't- I thought that someone else-"

"Max, it's alright." He said and the corner of my mouth twitched when he chuckled like it was all some sort of joke. "You're just being you. I think I'd be more surprised if you _didn't_ react at all."

"But if I hurt you, I don't know what I would've done." I say quietly, tugging his arm lightly to go back around the island to my sandwich.

"You would've told me to stop being a wuss and wipe the blood of the floor?" I glared at him.

"It's _fine_ Max." He exaggerated his tone to prove his point. "My pretty little head could do without my body. It isn't all _that_ important." He was smiling; not in a full blown kind of way, but enough to make my heart melt, as sappy as that sounds.

"Actually, the knife sailed _vertically_ and that pretty little head of your would be chopped in half." I said flirtatiously and ran my index finger down the middle of his face, "And then I wouldn't be able to kiss you." I lightly tapped his lips before I turned around and went to face the cupboards, smirking to myself as I took a bite. When I look back on moments like these, I always wonder what comes over me. _Ugh._

I felt his arms wrap around me.

"Oh _yes_, that would be bad…" he continued to tease. I finally gave up and laughed.

After I took another bite, I turned around in his arms to face him.

"But Fang, I really am sorry."

"I've never heard you apologize so much in your life, Max. Do you not have faith in my skills?"

"No, not that… I'm sorry I haven't spent time with you. I mean, the last time we went out was on my birthday, and I know that was just 2 weeks ago but there's been so much stuff and you've been so understanding-"

"Hey, it's okay. I knew what I was getting into, dating the girl who's going to save the world."

My face was suddenly wiped of all emotions. "Don't ever call me that again. _Ever._" Now he laughed.

My lower back was pressed against the kitchen counter, with his body leaning on mine, that it was starting to get a little uncomfortable. When he noticed this, he suddenly grabbed my waist with his strong, warm hands and lifted me up to place me on the counter top. Now, he was standing in the space between my legs, looking up at me.

"Sometime this week…" he said, wiping some mayo off the corner of my lip, "We'll go on a date…this Saturday." And when he noticed my bright eyes and the smile that started to spread on my face, he said, "And no, I will not tell you where. Goodness Max, ever heard of a surprise?"

I punched his arm and laughed. Well didn't we have the case of the giggles this fine morning. "Actually, I've had enough surprises to last me 5 lifetimes." And really. Who was born with wings, finds out the dude who gave them wings is actually her father, travels around the country with her merry band of mutants and has to save the world? Raise your hands.

Fang smirked. The kind of smirk that looks both adorable and sexy at the same time and it only looked perfect on him. The kind of smirk that makes your heart race and slow down at the same time. (For someone who very rarely shows emotions, he sure had a lot of smiles.)

I raised an eyebrow, asking him through my eyes, 'Why the hell are you giving me that look?', before he quickly pulled me closer to him and kissed me.

The whole mood in the air changed. One minute we were just joking around and in the next, he kisses me.

At 2 in the morning. In the kitchen.

Now _that_ took me by surprise.

It was nothing hungry or nearly pornographic like in the movies. Naw, I save those kisses for near death experiences.

It was actually very sweet.

His lips were just pressed against mine, warm and familiar, soft and comforting, and when I got over the initial shock, I closed my eyes.

It was a 3 second kiss. Just 3 seconds but it was perfect.

When he drew back, a smile was evident on his face and I couldn't help but smile back. When his hands started to drop though, I found that I didn't want him to let go just yet. So very slowly, my arms wrapped around his neck, drawing him back to me.

Our faces were literally just an inch apart and I laughed because of the situation.

Fang. And I. Kissing. In the kitchen. At 2 in the morning.

Luckily, things didn't get anymore cliché. We weren't in a tree nor have we kissed in one or I would've _died_.

I stared into his depthless eyes, his eyes that always seemed to say so much and nothing at all at the same time. I stared long and hard, and we were both just looking at each other at such close proximity I bet I would start to go cross-eyed when _something _just suddenly popped into my head.

I didn't understand how I had a shred of a coherent thought left in me, but I did.

And why did I always get brilliant ideas when I kissed/was kissing Fang? I dunno.

Maybe the universe was telling me I should kiss him more… I'm not complainin'.

"Let's go." I told him, my voice nearly an inaudible whisper. It was his turn to look confused. "What?"

"I said let's go. Right now. Just you and me." And I'm only telling you this but I loved the sound of the idea. The sound of you and me.

"What are you saying?" God, was he stupid.

"Why wait? Why don't we go now? We could go anywhere, do whatever we want and be back before lunch." I told him, smiling brightly with my hands still around his neck. I didn't raise my voice, even in excitement, because somehow if I spoke too loud it would just ruin the atmosphere. My plan was a reckless thing to do but after a kiss from Fang like that I didn't want to separate from him just yet, and I couldn't sleep anyways. Besides, I knew the flock could handle themselves. "Come on, I know you want to." I urged, sifting my fingers through his hair.

He was quiet for a few moments, thinking as always (if you didn't notice, he was always the rational one between the 2 of us. Don't tell him I said that though), and when his eyes looked back up to mine he said, "So what did you have in mind?"

- - - - -O- - - - -

I was freezing cold. My eyes were friggin' painful. My shivers could practically cause a tsunami. And my throat was started to feel raw and swollen.

But I was in heaven.

Here I was, wearing nothing but my worn-out sneakers, a hoodie over a large t-shirt and my sleeping shorts (lucky, it wasn't one of my over-stretched, worn out ones but instead, one of my _almost_ over-stretched, _nearly_ worn out ones), at 2-something in the morning, swimming in the middle of the ocean with my boyfriend.

Now how's _that_ for random.

We immediately left right after Fang's innocent question as I dragged him out of the house. We quickly took off into the early morning in its complete darkness, using our internal compasses to lead the way.

It was very spontaneous of us. Usually we planned ahead on somewhere before actually going there, but this time we just went wherever our hearts and our heads took us.

We headed south-southwest and the land beneath our feet went from city, to beachfront houses and hotels in the blink of an eye.

And then we ended up where we were now.

I'm not even going to rationalize what was happening because there was nothing sensible about it. All I knew was that I was having fun with the one person I wanted to be with at the moment and that I didn't want it to end.

Turning my head left and right in search of Fang about 50 feet beneath the dark water's surface, I felt a sudden tug on my ankle and looked down to see exactly who I was looking for.

Fang looked even more gorgeous (if that were possible) underwater with his dark hair floating around and framing his face and just the grace of his movements as he swam.

He laughed, tiny bubbles escaping his lips and when I swam down to his level, I memorized the width of his blinding smile, the wrinkles in the corner of his eyes and just his whole demeanor. I've never seen him _this_ happy in my life.

And sometimes when people who rarely show emotions actually _do_ show emotions, it looks so much more real and beautiful on them. I smiled back at him.

We played a little more underwater for a few more minutes. You must be wondering what we could possibly be doing to actually endure staying in the middle of the freakin' sea just to fool around, but then again, you'd never know just how exhilarating it was. And when you're with your best friend sometimes no words were needed to be said to just enjoy the moment.

I could easily tell you it was one of the happiest moments in my life.

When we eventually surfaced, I immediately took in Fang's pale complexion, slightly purple lips and bloodshot eyes. Features that definitely didn't look like the Fang I knew. Crap.

It's one thing to spontaneously have fun; it's another thing to let things get too far.

With thoughts of hypothermia or possibly death, I tried to raise my voice and said, "We should go back to the beach." But my voice was hoarse and it hurt like hell to talk.

We could easily breathe underwater just like we do in the air but staying under for too long will inevitably take its toll.

It was hard to get airborne from the water, but we managed, and soon we were flying back.

The trip back was filled with goofing around as well, and at one point, when I jokingly punched Fang on the shoulder as we flew about 2 feet over the surface of the water, he dove right in for a few seconds and flew back out looking bleary and stunned.

His face was absolutely hilarious.

We came to a running stop on the beach after a few minutes, spraying sand everywhere and tripping oh so gracefully that we started to roll, all the while laughing.

Since the flight back to the beach conveniently dried us up, we didn't end up looking like breaded bird kids ready to be fried.

We bought hotdogs at a stall that just opened the moment we stepped on the dimly-lit boardwalk, and we tried very hard not to laugh at the vendor's gaze as he took in our unruly states, salty smell and soggy money from Fang's back pocket.

As we started walking on the boardwalk again, munching on our food, a tiny bright dot in my peripheral view made me stop in my tracks and turn to stare at it.

"Fang," I tugged at his almost completely dried sleeve as he was trying to take a bite, "_Look._"

And when he followed my line of sight, we both stared in awe.

Because right there where the ocean met the sky was the sunrise.

And we both just ended up standing there, hand in hand, and our eyes never left the sun's hypnotic climb towards the sky.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"You better sleep with one eye open, Fang Whatever-the-hell-your-family-name-is!" I threatened as I picked the grass and mud out of my hair and clothes. And mouth.

It took us 2 hours to fly back from wherever beach we jut came from, and Fang, the bastard, decided to shove me 'playfully' just when I was retracting my wings to land.

And now a good part of the garden was scrubbed with my front, if you get what I mean. Luckily, I was wearing a rather thick hoodie, though now it was totally ruined.

Fang landed next to me, his shoulders shaking as he laughed silently.

_Why that little…_

I strode towards him fast and flicked him on the head. He winced but still continued to laugh.

"Oh, give your girlfriend breast cancer why don't ya!" I shouted and proceeded to punch him on the chest.*

He weakly dodged them due to the fact he was _still _laughing. "I'm so…_so_ sorry Max…"

When I realized that it was useless to fight him, and that we'd eventually just shrug it off, I stopped and huffed, crossing my arms over my chest like a 5-year old.

"Max, I really am sorry." He walked on front of me and tried to pry my hands apart. When I didn't react, he bent down and kissed me on my cheek. "Come on, let's go wake up the kids." He said and dragged me inside the house.

"Fine," I said, started to get over it a little. "But you know, it wasn't even funny." I said in all seriousness.

He looked down at me and smiled. "Are you kidding? Your face was hilarious. And that's what you get for knocking me into the ocean when I was already dried up."

I glared at him. We were now inside the house, standing in the long hallway just before the staircase. "Oh yeah? Well no more kisses for you." I said and stuck my tongue out. I started laughed hysterically and bolted up the stairs with Fang on my heels saying, "You're not serious, are you?"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I crept stealthily into Nudge's room, closing the door as quietly as I could and tiptoeing my way to her bedside.

I stared at her sleeping form, with her long, wavy, dark brown hair tied in a messy bun and her blanket twisted around her arms and legs. She looked so serene and peaceful, her chest rising and falling as she probably dreamt about…guys? Parties? Who really knows what she thinks about? Well, except for Angel, but you get what I mean.

I smiled to myself as I remembered all those times back in the E-shaped house when I would wake her up and she would always take the longest to get downstairs.

Still smiling, I put my lips a few inches close to her ear and shouted, "MORNIN' NUDGE! NOW GET UP!"

Nudge's eyes flew open in the next second and she bolted into a sitting position, shouting, "What? Where? Where's the fire? What's happening? Who's dying?"

When realization that there was no fire, nothing was happening and no one was dying dawned on her, I was only able to giggle for a second and turn around before dashing away from a very cranky, very pissed off Nudge.

"MAXIMUM RIDE! OH. MY. _GOD_. YOU BETTER RUN!"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I could bet you all my allowance (which wasn't much anyways) that my smile could overpower the sun on this day.

It was very overwhelming because you all know how much I _hate_ emotions. Even feeling so much happiness made me a little uneasy, but as flock leader, you have to learn to make sacrifices sometimes and I believed that this was what we needed.

We were just finishing lunch prepared by none other than Iggy, just the 6 of us.

No mom, no Ella, no Jeb. Not even Total or Akila were here. It was just the flock – the flock we were 2 years ago, the flock that answered and depended on nobody.

"So what next, Max?" Nudge turned and faced me on the table, licking her fingers with a blinding expression on her face. Okay, never mind. _Nudge_ could overpower the sun today. I was practically a match stick compared to her.

While I thought about this, Gazzy piped up, talking with his mouth full and sending bits of scrambled egg all over the table.

"Why don't we just go flying and then we'll see what we want to do from there?" he said, though he it ended up sounding more like, "Wo tho we shush go frara uh de wer shee wha we was ho do fro sher?"

"That's a great idea, Gazzer. Let's go!" I immediately agreed and he beamed at me. That was very unlike me if you all didn't notice, but I was trying to patch up the flock, and sometimes it was just best to shut up and agree with the masses.

After we took our showers, we all met up outside, though not without proper clothing. It was a warm day for February, but the air was still chilly and snow covered the whole scene.

I was tying Nudge's scarf on her neck while we waiting for Iggy, and once we were all ready; we took off into the frosty blue sky one by one, looking pretty badass like we choreographed it.

We flew with no directions or patterns whatsoever, doing random flips in the air and pushing each other while laughing the whole time.

At one point, I accidentally went into warp drive, as Gazzy would like to call it, and apparently I back-handed Iggy in the face and knocked over Angel as I went. They were pretty pissed when I flew back.

"Sorry sweetie." I smiled sheepishly at Angel when suddenly, someone yanked at my right wing harshly, causing me to dip a few feet.

"TAG!" Nudge screamed and started to flap away quickly as I gathered my bearings. I believe that was revenge for the wake-up call.

A wing to us can compare to a leg or an arm for normal people, and since we were mutant bird kids, we were unusually strong for our age. So imagine someone _trying to rip you damn leg off while you were walking? _Now how cool would _that_ feel, eh?

"Jeez woman, it's called tag-a-feather, not break-a-limb!" I shouted as I flew fast towards an unsuspecting Fang.

Just when I was 3 feet away from him in the air, with my arm extended towards his, Fang was suddenly hurdled backwards in mid-air, tumbling twice with incredible force.

_Whoa._ What the hell was that?

He blinked twice, which translates to surprise, before he shook it off quickly and got a determined look on his face. Oh crap, now he was after _me_.

"Sorry Fang! I guess I underestimated my speed!" I apologized reluctantly and started to back away. I think it was just the air that rushed with me as I picked up speed that caused him to flip, though I wasn't really sure…

"'Underestimated my speed' my ass!" he shouted back and shot me a sly smile before flying towards me. And let me tell you, he looked kinda scary.

_Oh crap._

"RETREAT! RETREAT!" I shouted back to the rest of the flock in panic as we backtracked and scrambled, screaming our heads off like little kids.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The next game we played was Hide and Seek. As you can observe, the flock and I were hiding in various spots around our gargantuan house, and Gazzy was seeking us.

It may seem a little unfair to Gazzy, what with so many hiding spots and all and the fact that the size of the living room can compare to 3 ballrooms combined, but we all had our abilities and our raptor senses. He's bound to find at least one of us in a few more minutes.

I was simply hiding in the kitchen, in the small space that was cut out off the side of the kitchen island. Fang was actually sharing the space with me a few seconds ago, but he decided to ditch me because apparently we were _too _noisy and he'd rather save himself. Jerk.

It was eerily quiet here; the only things I could hear were my steady breathing and the hum of the steel fridge off to the right.

With my arms wrapped around my knees, I was actually sort of spacing out because no action was happening. I was on the verge of deciding to expose myself and join all the running, screaming fun when those thoughts suddenly shifted to…

_Someone else's._

I could see what he (let's just say it were a he) was seeing. Could think what he was thinking. This was some sort of out-of-body experience and since I've never felt anything like this, I just stayed still with shock.

I didn't know how this was happening; it was normal to feel afraid like how I was feeling now, but then again I should've been used to crazy stuff like this happening since I was already such a messed up kid. I felt nauseated because the force of these thoughts hit me like a train that I started to breathe heavily.

I was seeing through the person's eyes as he ran through the white hallways and darted around corners with precision. He listened very intently as he entered a room, scanning the whole area with his raptor gaze that even the miniscule details were magnified and studied within those few seconds. When he realized that there were no people in the room, he stepped back out and started to run the halls again.

These halls brought back painful and awful memories of the School for both me and the person, the bright white walls similar to our past obstacles, but he tried not to think too much about it. He had a game to play, people to find.

…_where are they? They can't all be _that_ good at hide and seek… bet they're not actually in the house…_

He checked 2 more rooms with the same method, but there wasn't anybody. Finally, he gave up on the second floor and flew down the stairs gracefully to sweep the living room.

Living room: nobody.

Guest room: nada.

Bathroom: zilch.

Shoe closet: empty.

Entertainment room, the library, Dr. M's study, the hallways and the dining room: no luck.

He was starting to get frustrated.

_Where the he-ck are they? If they're all in the forest, I _swear-

But then at that moment, he heard _breathing_. Coming from the kitchen.

The one place he hasn't checked yet.

_Oh my God. If they're all huddled in the pantry together…_

He strode into the kitchen loudly, giving up on stealth.

"Come out, come out wherever you are…" he chanted, sounding ominous as he walked slowly around the breakfast table. The breathing was still audible.

His sneakers were unusually loud on the floor tiles as he slid his palm on the kitchen island's counter and rounded the corner quickly to _scream_-

I instantly snapped out of the person's mind when Gazzy screamed, 'GOTCHA!', scaring me silly that I bumped the top of my head under the kitchen island. He then started to laugh, sounding so much like his age, at my bewildered expression.

But it wasn't funny to me.

I didn't know what to do, what to think. My mind was disoriented and muddled. I was _scared_.

Gazzy started to realize that it was in fact _not _funny when he noticed that I was trying to control my breathing. He looked at me, and I wiped away the tears, actual _tears_, that streaked my face. I didn't realize I was crying all this time until now.

I was mentally praying that he didn't see me like this or that I were someone else. That I was mistaken for someone else, though that's clearly impossible.

But then Gazzy's words stopped all the prayers in my head and shocked me even more.

"Angel, are you okay?" He asked, his eyes gazing intently into mine.

Now I was confused, shocked _and_ scared. I had no words to respond to Gazzy.

When I tried and pushed all those thoughts away, I said the only thing I could say: "_What?_"

At my words, Gazzy started to blink rapidly and an expression of shock mixed with confusion was etched on his face. Welcome to the club.

"_Max?_"

Gazzy gave me room to crawl out from under the cramped space and once we were face to face, I massaged my temples. All this was giving me a headache…

The rest of the flock started to file into the kitchen – Angel probably told them I was found – and they all stared at us.

"So…what's up, guys?" Nudge asked reluctantly. They could all tell something was off.

But we were still shell-shocked by what happened. No one was talking.

Finally, I found my voice. "Gazzy, why did you call me Angel?" I asked him slowly, still rubbing my temple.

"You called Max Angel?" Iggy asked Gazzy, "Max is sure as hell no angel." I guess he was trying to lighten the mood but this was just too serious to turn into a joke. No one laughed.

Poor Gazzy was looking back and forth at me and Angel. His eyes were the size of the moon and he was slightly talking to himself.

"B-b-but I saw Angel." He turned to his sister, "You…you were under the island. I saw you, I swear!"

"Gazzy, _I_ was under the island, not Angel." I said, looking at everybody.

"I knew it was my sister, Max. Don't talk to me like I'm crazy." He retorted defensively.

"I'm not-" I started but was cut off by Angel.

"But I was with Iggy and Nudge in the vents the whole time. Even ask them." Angel said, looking at everybody as well.

Gazzy looked panicked. "Back me up, sis. Read my mind or something. I'm telling you, _I saw you_."

Angel nodded and got a determined look on her face before closing her eyes to concentrate. After a few seconds, she gasped. When her eyes flew open she whispered, "Th-that's _impossible_…"

Gazzy looked relieved, but that still didn't explain why he saw Angel instead of me.

"Are you sure you were under the island, Max?" Iggy asked.

"_Yes!_ Fang was even with me at first but then he left 'cause he said we were too conspicuous." I turned to Angel, "Read _my _mind, Ange. I never left here."

Angel closed her eyes again and tried concentrating but it took her even longer. I didn't know how to read minds but normally Angel didn't take any longer than 5 seconds. She gritted her teeth and I saw her clench her fists but after a while, she relaxed.

When she looked up at everybody, her eyes were squinting and filled with confusion. "I…I can't hear anything, Max," she faced me, "I can't read your mind."

"_WHAT?_" We all exclaimed. Never in flock history has Angel not been able to read out minds. She could practically write all our biographies with every single detail down to our underwear preferences.

I always wanted my privacy. I always felt violated knowing that Angel was able to read my most precious thoughts, my memories and most importantly, my emotions. But this one time, it had to be this _one_ time that she can't read my mind.

"Do you have mind blocks, Max? Like Jeb? Because once I'm in, I get pushed out. I can't hear anything." She started to panic now as though something were wrong with her.

Everyone turned to face me.

"What? I swear, I was there the whole time. I was even having a brain attack just before Gazzy found me which explains why I couldn't have moved." I told them, telling them a half-lie. I was frozen in place not because of a brain attack but because I was in Gazzy's mind, hearing Gazzy's thoughts.

Angel flashed a thought in all our minds, a clip that made us look through Gazzy's eyes as he rounded the corner just a few minutes ago. We saw Gazzy exclaim, and when the person underneath the kitchen island jumped in surprise to look at him, it was, in fact, _Angel._ Angel wearing what she was wearing now. Angel with her bouncy blond curls that always seemed to perfectly frame her face and match her sky blue eyes. It was her underneath the kitchen island.

Then Gazzy started to laugh because in his mind, his sister's expression was very funny. He was only cut short when he heard a quiet sob come from the area where his sister was. In his mind, he wondered if his sister was crying or why she was crying in the first place, so he voiced his thoughts and asked her. Angel, with her wide eyes, suddenly got a WTF expression on her face and asked him 'What?'

And then it happened.

He blinked for a second. No, not _even_ a second, and when his eyes focused on his sister's form underneath the island again, he saw it was _me_ instead, in the same position Angel was in, with the same expression on her face.

When Angel stopped the mental video, everyone spoke at the same time.

"What the _bloody hell_ was that?"

"How was that possible? Oh my God! That was insane!"

"Are you guys sure you didn't just switch before he looked back?"

"That was me! _How_ was that me?"

The flood of questions brought back the headache that I just had a few moment ago and I winced at the throbbing at my temples.

They continued to bombard me with questions that obviously I didn't have the answer to. How was I supposed to know what was going on?

I bet I looked like a wimp, a weakling, digging my perfectly manicured nails into my palms and clenching my eyes as tightly as I could to make the pain go away while everyone blabbered on. I didn't want to show myself like this to the flock but _all _the talking was just _so_…

"Everyone, _SHUT UP!_" A deep, very pissed off voice resounded and successfully made everyone clamp their mouths. We all looked towards Fang to see him standing off near the entrance to the kitchen, fists clenched and a hard expression on his face. I ignored that fact that he totally looked hot at the moment because when he was like this, there was a possible chance that someone would get hurt.

"We don't know the explanation, _alright?_ So let's just stop bickering about it and move on. We don't know why or how that happened, but this won't solve anything so let's all just go upstairs and…and play Guitar Hero, alright? Does that sound like a plan?" he said, his tone harsh at first and calmed down towards the end.

It was quiet for a moment. I could tell people were still thinking about it, trying to figure things out, but Fang was right. It was difficult to move on but the truth always and eventually surfaces; sooner or later Jeb would barge into the house and spout more earth-shattering truth to us or something like that.

The question was left hanging in the air but luckily, Nudge didn't want things to turn awkward. "Hey, you're just suggesting that because you're really good at it." She said, scowling, but you could tell she was trying hard not to smile.

And from there, the tension in the air started to recede. When the flock started to leave the kitchen, Fang stayed near the exit and waited for me to come towards him. Once I was close enough, he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and held me to him.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, just a headache, tha's all." I told him truthfully, because he probably noticed me during the brain attack and I've lied to him one to many times already.

"Max, it's okay," he kissed the top of my head, "We'll figure things out together."

"Mhmm…" I mumbled against his chest as I wrapped my arms around his waist; I was spent for the day.

Fang held me closer. "Everything's gonna be okay." He whispered into my ear before we headed upstairs.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

*Btw, that comment was supposed to be funny. If any of you got offended by it, I'm really sorry and it wasn't intended.

I just realized no one bothered to guess what I was referring to in the end of chapter 20 and the answer is…Fang: A Maximum Ride novel. Which btw, I still think that novel was stupid.

So yeah, no one gets a virtual bandaid. :'( (::[ ]::)

OOH! **Question**: How old do ya'll think I am? From like, my writing or how I talk, or whatever. :)

Review my lovelies!

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	23. Cover Blown

Hey guys! How've ya'll been? :)

Thank you **fireflies371** and **DancingintheRayne **for reviewing!

Funny how you guys just answered the question instead of going, "OMG WTF HAPPENED THERE?" But then again I guess you're all getting tired of asking and will just wait instead. :P

Enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Shopping was next to _painful_, Mitzi thought, as she stood on the corner of an intersection, waiting to cross the street to get to Charlotte Russe.

She never thought she'd say (or think) of those blasphemous words herself, but when she was forced to go shopping with her parents in the next city over, she couldn't stop the internal rant that clouded her thoughts from the moment she stepped in her father's Mercedes Benz.

It wasn't that she was embarrassed to go shopping with her parents – in fact, they were pretty cool – it's just that, whenever they went shopping, they always took decades to get to the next shop, and Mitzi grew more and more restless.

Here she was, wasting her Saturday afternoon in some busy, crowded city when she could have spent it watching old black and white movies, drinking soda and eating popcorn in her house with Bris. She tried to entertain herself by texting her best friends, but Cam wasn't replying (which was typical Cam behavior anyway) and Izzy's phone was switched off, probably too occupied with her new-found love, Mason.

She was barely able to get away, but she eventually convinced her parents to let her go off on her own for a while, while they debated the pros and cons of a new dryer.

As she spaced out, waiting for the red light across the street to turn green, she realized that she had been staring at the coveted, inhumanely handsome Nicholas Ride.

She wondered what he was doing all the way here but that barely mattered as her mind swirled with thoughts about the boy across the street.

The first thing you'd think about him was his looks. She didn't think it was possible for anyone to look so…_good_. With his perfectly messed up dark hair that slightly covered his eyes, his angular face, his broad and built chest and his tall height, he seemed too good to be true.

He was just standing there, unmoving, unsmiling, with his arms crossed over his chest, the muscles evident.

God, he was _hot_.

Admittedly, she had the tiniest crush on her best friend's brother. But who didn't? Who girl didn't turn their head, or sigh, or swoon, or stare, or giggle, or talk about Nick when he entered the cafeteria like it was nobody's business? Her heart was set on Bris, but a little gaping and daydreaming wouldn't hurt anybody.

Mitzi contemplated on crossing the street to her left right now, instead of heading straight, to say hi to him. It somewhat calmed her to know a friendly face in this huge city.

She could maybe get a drink with him – she knew Starbucks was close by – and talk a little. Yeah, that's sounded like a plan!

But one more look at his figure made her think twice for a second, then completely drop the subject.

Nick wasn't a friendly face. In fact, he was probably only nice to her because she was Cam's friend. Of course she couldn't talk to him. He just seemed like the off-limits type of guy.

Him, and Cam, and James.

She wasn't even sure why she was friends with Cam and James, she just was.

The 3 of them were so different from everybody else. They didn't look like they were from Arizona, they didn't look alike, and they're so closed off and so the same, yet so _different _at the same time. It was hard to pin down what exactly they were.

With Nick, he was, in one word, _scary_.

No, scary doesn't seem to cover it.

His good looks seem almost deadly, his height so intimidating, and there was no doubt that he could take on the toughest guy at out school, the senior quarterback Jonathan Berry.

Everything about him _screamed_ badass.

One could only imagine his glare, because Mitzi for one has never looked him straight in the eye. She doesn't think anyone has, besides his family and James.

As she continued to stare at his face across the street, she couldn't hold back the shocked gasp that escaped her lips when she could see the look on his face of…was it _anticipation?_

She couldn't see the rest of his features – the possible sparkle in his eyes and a change in his rigid stance – but his smile, not just an upturn at the corner of his lips, but a full-fledge grin, complete with dazzling white teeth could easily be spotted across the street.

Up until today, Mitzi thought he was incapable of smiling or showing any other emotion pertaining to happiness. His face was always stoic, expressionless with hard eyes and a straight clamped mouth. But right now…looking at him….God, his smile was beautiful.

Yeah, that may have sounded silly in her head but when you see someone smile for the first time, and a _good_ smile at that, it makes a difference.

Red turned green above, but Mitzi stayed frozen in place, analyzing the famous Nick Ride. (What a stalker…)

She watched him; as his arms outstretched, as his smile brightened, and as he caught the running girl from the street, wrapping his arms around her waist and proceeded to kiss her on the lips.

Saying Mitzi was shocked doesn't even cover it.

Nick Ride…_had a girlfriend?_

Well, okay. That shouldn't come as a surprise, I mean, he _is_ gorgeous, and Cam may have mentioned it before, but Mitzi was just shocked that he found someone who could change him.

Someone who could make him feel happy. Someone who could make him a different person that he voluntarily shows emotions just for her. Someone who could make him smile. Someone who was able to break down the walls to his heart.

She watched as they kissed. Nothing too whoa or anything. Actually, it was very sweet.

She felt jealous, not just because he had a happily ever after but because they looked like the perfect couple.

Like brangelina, or zanessa.*

The girl was tall like Nick – about a head shorter, but Nick was _really_ tall – with blondish-brown hair the color of melted caramel.

Just from the back, the girl easily struck Mitzi as those model-types – with an estimated height of 5'8 – despite the not so fashionable clothes of a bomber jacket, torn jeans and dirt-streaked Vans. She knew that beneath those baggy clothes was a tall, thin body with the right amount of curves, as seen from Nick's arm around her waist.

She was beautiful. They were a beautiful couple.

How did 2 good-looking people end up together? Those only happened in the movies. '_Because life was unfair,_' she thought bitterly.

Shaking those thoughts away, Mitzi took a deep breathe.

What the _hell_ was she doing? Stalking her best friend's brother like that? That was _beyond_ weird.

Mitzi started to turn away, and at the same time, so did the couple.

She turned slightly to sneak one last look at them – and just about dropped her jaw all over the sidewalk.

Because just across the street, there was Nick in all his tall, dark and handsome glory as he slung an arm over his girlfriend's shoulders and bent down to kiss her temple as they walked away.

And his girlfriend, dressed all boy-ish, but looking stunning with her long wavy golden hair and her long legs, looked up at her boyfriend, laughed and leaned on his shoulder as they continued on.

But it wasn't their carefree happiness that made her stare. It wasn't the sweetness in their gestures, or the way they moved with grace.

It was because the girl in his arms was Cam.

Cam, her stubborn, sarcastic, paranoid best friend who she imagined was spending her Saturday morning still in bed or hanging out with Zach in the park. Cam, the beautiful new girl in school that had all the boys daydreaming about her without even knowing it.

Cam, Nick Ride's little sister, who she just kissed full on the lips a few moments ago.

_They_ were the perfect couple in her head.

Brother and sister, _dating_.

Holy. Fricken. _Crap._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

As the saying goes: all good things come to an end.

After my _ah-may-zing_ date with Fang, after dinner, after watching that 'scary' movie with the whole flock and my sister in the entertainment room, after I tucked all the younger kids in bed like the ol' days, and after I took a nice hot shower, I simply went to bed.

Tonight was another one of those cold nights when all you want to do is surround yourself with pillows, put like, a zillion layers of blankets and sheets on and curl up into a fetal position.

As I slept, I don't think I was dreaming anything in particular. Well, nothing important enough for me to remember, but in the next second my mind was consumed by darkness and the feeling of loss and fear. A nightmare.

I tossed and turned in bed, wrapping myself in a cocoon of blankets. It was the typical dark setting with flashes of different haunting scenes. I was terrified, but luckily this nightmare wasn't as detailed or painful as the others and I was kind of used to this by now.

It actually _felt_ different, like I was watching it in a movie instead of being the main character, running away from the monsters and thoughts that clouded my head. I didn't understand much of it because it was just so…so very fuzzy and unfocused…

And then after a few seconds I realized: the dream wasn't mine.

There was just a different feeling to this dream, figuratively stamped with someone else's name and accidentally sent to me. It was a wonder how this was happening but I didn't stop to think how. It was much more important _who_ it was happening to.

I shot out of bed, or well, tried to at first, but I was bound pretty tightly like I was in a straight-jacket. Once I was able to slip out of the sheets, I ran out of my room and ran blindly through the maze-like halls.

I rounded a few corners and burst into the correct door without skipping a beat, striding fast towards the bed to wake up my baby.

"Angel…Angel, wake up! You're having a nightmare…" I shook her.

Usually in shows, the person having the nightmare takes _forever_ to wake up. They roll and mumble and scream in their sleep, trying to fight the dream, but for Angel, she sat up with a gasp the third time I shook her, a thin layer of sweat visible on her forehead.

I took a seat on her bed and rubbed her back comfortingly while she tried to slow her heart down. Once she seemed fine, she turned towards me with wide eyes and threw her small, skinny arms around me, holding me tightly.

It takes a lot to scare any of us. Well, yeah, we do get scared but we try not to show it to each other. We all share this complex that, if we showed we were brave, then we would become brave, and the rest follow each of our examples because no one would want to be a left-out coward.

But the truth is, Angel's still 7. We've all had nightmares – quite a bunch actually – so I didn't know why Angel was so shaken by this. Maybe it's because she was starting to get used to a normal life, or maybe it's because her guard was down and truthfully, she was never really brave enough to face these sorts of things.

If the latter were the case then I was a bad mother to her.

"Shh…it's okay sweetie. Everything's okay. I've got you…" I said, rocking her back and forth awkwardly in my lap since she's grown so much, and stroking her hair back from her sweaty forehead.

"It was _horrible_, Max. Just horrible…" She said into my neck, her words shaky and muffled but understood.

"You wanna tell me all about it?" I whispered gently, reverting back to 13-year old Max whenever one of the kids needed comforting. She shook her head no.

After a few seconds of just holding her, she drew back and took a deep breath. She tried smiling at me, but it was all lopsided and I knew it was forced.

"Sorry I woke you, Max. I just haven't had a nightmare in a long time and it brought back…certain memories. It won't ever happen again." She said weakly. I smiled sadly at her.

"Angel, it's okay to be afraid. I'm sure you know we get scared too sometimes, so you don't have to always keep a brave face." I comforted her. She wrapped her skinny arms around me again and rested her head on the crook of my shoulder.

We stayed like that for a few minutes, just me cradling Angel and stroking her golden curls hypnotically.

It brought back old memories from when we still used to live in the E-shaped house. Back then, whenever Angel had nightmares, or thought about scary things, or just wasn't able to sleep, she would go to either me, Iggy or Fang and she would just lay on either of our beds as we stayed up late at night during those times we had to plan on how to teaching the younger kids how to survive. She would fall asleep, and when we try and wake her up to go back to her room with Nudge, she would pretend she was too sleepy and we would end up sharing our beds with her.

I began to rise to get back to my room, laying Angel down on her bed and tucking her in like a true 7-year old. I tucked my hair behind my ear and kissed her forehead, but before I could fully stand up, she called my name.

"Max?" she said, her voice tinged with a bit of desperation and longing.

I turned to face her again and I noticed that she was biting her lip, unsure if she should say what was on her mind.

"Just spit it out, Ange." I said, smiling kindly down at her.

"I know I'm already 7, and that ghosts and monsters don't really exist, and that I'm perfectly capable of protecting myself, but Max…?" she looked up at me with wide, innocent eyes, drawing a long pause, "Can I sleep with you tonight?"

I responded without skipping a beat as my face broke into a sweet smile. "Oh, of course you can, sweetie. Come here." I said, and made space for her to get out of bed.

Hand in hand, we walked down the dark halls to my room together.

I knew that Angel wasn't _that_ shaken up that she needed to sleep beside me like she used to. She was all grown up now, we all were. We were all forced to grow up.

But it was one of those moments when you just _needed_ to be with someone. Like how I normally felt with Fang, even if we just lied in the garden with our hair getting damp, we just stayed there, side by side, without talking at all.

Like how you lean on your best friend's shoulder and just stay like that with no words needed. Or hug your mother for a long time without needing any reason to. Because things could just be that simple, and sometimes you don't need a reason to be with someone.

Once we reached my room, I tucked her under the blankets on one side and went to the other side and got under as well.

We slept on our sides and I held her tiny body to mine like a mother would, with my arm draped over her waist casually.

"Night Max." She said, snuggling deeper into the soft pillows and sighing contently.

"Night sweetie." I said, already on the verge of dozing off…

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

When my door creaked open.

My eyes flew wide open and my arm shot into my side table drawer to retrieve my switch blade faster than humanly possible. My hand was poised and ready to throw, sitting up slightly with the blanket pooling around my waist, when I heard a familiar voice call out my name.

"Max?" the voice said, sounding raspy and tired but at the same time awake. I immediately knew it was Ella.

I lowered my hand slowly, a little bit embarrassed too, and cocked my head to the side in question. "What are you doing here?"

Ella fully entered my room and walked forward reluctantly, rubbing her arm and stuttering over her words.

"Ella, you can tell me." I said, exasperated this was the second time I was doing this tonight.

"Well…ya see…I was kinda falling asleep already, ya know, but I kept thinking about the _movie_-"

"Ella? _Really?_" I exclaimed, raising an eyebrow even if she couldn't see me in the darkness. "You're 14. Aren't you kinda too old to be scared about those things?" I asked. I mean when _I_ was 14, I would laugh at those kinds of movies and criticized all the bad special effects and props. In fact, Iggy, Fang and I would be having field days whenever we watched that kind of crap.

Once the words slip though, I saw the silhouette of her shoulders droop. "Yeah, I know. It was a stupid thing to ask…" she started to turn around, and my chest constricted with guilt.

Oh _great._

Now I felt like a bitch. Well, it is in fact, a bitchy thing for me to do.

Ella wasn't like me, Fang and Iggy and I should always remember that. She had the right to be scared of those kinds of scary movies, and the dark, and all those kinds of things that make little kids scared because she's _still_ a little kid. I wasn't.

"No wait, Ella," I said hastily, and she turned around from her spot on the carpet, "Come 'ere." I said with a smile and I could tell she was smiling as well as she made her way to my side of the bed, scooted me over, and shimmied herself into a comfortable position under the blankets, looking so cute as she snuggled deeper from the cold.

"Night Max!" she said happily.

"Goodnight Ella." I said, pretending to sound annoyed though I was still smiling.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

But then as I was about to close my eyes _again, _the door creaked open for the second time that night, my eyes opening again and probably protruding with red veins right now.

_FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY!_

I reached over Ella, causing her to squeak, and gripped my switch blade once again from the side table drawer, not hesitating this time to twist it in my fingers, thrust my wrist and release the knife as it sailed through the air. I didn't care if it was a stupid burglar or the flippin' President of the United Sates of America; It was late and I was _hecka_ cranky by then.

Luckily, it was Nudge. Nudge, who had the ability to control anything and all things metal.

The switch blade dropped to the floor a ruler's distance from her face, clattering pathetically on the floor, and she shot me a pointed look.

"Skills." I told her, nodding at how much she's improved over the past few months.

"Well that, and knowing you, that's something you would've done. I can't imagine being your boyfriend," she rolled her eyes, "because if I wanted to pull something romantic and spontaneous on you I would've been dead a _long_ time ago."

The joking smile disappeared from my face. "Nudge, what are you doing here?"

"Okay, so I was sleeping but you all know I'm light sleeper. Actually we all are since we've been on the run for like, _ever_. So like, I was awake, but I'm not. Like drifting in and out of consciousness type of sleeping, so I could hear everything around me thanks to our super sensitive hearing skills and I hear footsteps in the halls, like multiple times! So I started to panic and get scared like whoa. So I went to Angel's room but _she wasn't there!_ And then I went to Ella's room and _she wasn't there either!_ So now I'm here and _apparently _you guys were having a sleepover that _clearly _I wasn't invited to. I mean, I'm, without a doubt, often than not the life of the party and you're _seriously_-"

"Nudge, this is not a sleepover party!" I whisper-shouted, rubbing my temple in frustration. Beside me, Ella was giggling to herself, finding this whole situation so darn _hilarious_, "Angel had a nightmare, and Ella couldn't sleep, alright?"

She nodded but then added, "Then I should sleep here too 'cause it wouldn't be fair if everyone's here and I'm not and it's your fault too for scaring the bejeezus out of me in the halls in the first place." She said, surprising me by stopping the rant at just 36 words instead of its usual never ending babble.

"Okay, okay!" I said in surrender and started to scoot over in the bed again when Angel decided to wake up at this moment and ask for a glass of water.

I stood up and poured her a glass from the mini fridge, grumbling, but when I turned around with the glass in hand, I saw that Nudge, Angel and Ella were all fast asleep, taking over the whole space of the bed.

Oh, you've _got_ to be kidding me.

My bed was humongous, true, but don't forget Angel and Nudge have _wings_ and believe me, they take up a lot of space. Then there was also the problem that Nudge – as mentioned before – was a very…physically active sleeper. She kicks, _a lot_, bringing back memories of the bruises she ended up giving me in the morning. And her arms moved a lot too.

She once punched me _hard i_n the boob and pushed me off the bed in the same night; it was very difficult to explain to the flock why I kept clutching my chest the next day.

Two bird kids already took up a lot of space, and if I squished myself in with the rest of them, it would just make everyone feel uncomfortable.

I stared at their sleeping forms in annoyance for a few seconds, wishing in vain that my stare could make them go back to their respective rooms, before sighing and picking up a folded, warm and fuzzy blanket from the end of my bed.

The whole 'aww how sweet Angel and Max are having a cute moment' atmosphere was gone and was replaced with one of exasperation.

Grumpily, I pushed all the pillows to once side of the sofa on front of my bed and positioned myself against the pillows, all the while muttering to myself. With the thick, fluffy blanket draped over my curled up body, I was finally able to fall asleep after a few seconds, dreaming of dreams where everything was actually okay and filled with peace and contentment.

But little did I know that in the morning, I woke up to the complete opposite.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Sorry it was short. Expect the **second climax** in the next, next chapter, kay? Not the next one.

I was **wondering** if you like the way I write from 3rd POV. Thoughts?

*It's also funny how I typed this the day before Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens broke up. So pretend they haven't yet.

**And if you think I exaggerated their looks and whatnot**, I really imagine that the whole flock was pretty. I mean, they were predators, so obviously the scientists would construct them so that they would, I dunno, stun or draw their prey to them? And _hello_, if you already had the ability to genetically alter someone's DNA, why wouldn't you change how they look as well. Make them perfect. If you already had that ability, why wouldn't you make your creations as beautiful and as perfect as possible? (Like the fact that the Director kinda made Max look like herself, but then that was a little weird. :|)

Oh yeah, **please read and review!** I swear, I know a bunch of people read this story and they just exit the tab afterwards. :| Tell me what you guys think, _**please?**_

And I'll ask the **question** again: How old do ya'll think I am? :D Please answer guys!

I should at least get **5 reviews** for this chapter. Imma be writing a lot this Christmas break so…yeah.

Peace out,

.: Tiffany :.


	24. Downhill From Here

Wassup guys? :)

Thank you **Fireflies371**, **XPeaceXloveXandXFangx**, **Jj**, **3xxxxx7xxxxxx1xxxxx**, **FPJ**, **Bubbley-chan**, **emotionalpoemgirl** and **xXjaziXx** for reviewing!

Moi? Posting another chapter after just 5 days? _Impossible!_

No, actually I already have the next chapter typed, edited and ready to be posted. :) I just want to evenly space out the updates. I am so evil. :)

**Next chapter?** Huge problemo, let me tell you. :|

But for now, enjoy chapter 24!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Max…Max, wake up…" A gentle voice said, close to my ear. But I didn't want to get up, I wanted to sleep.

Call me a softie, but over the past few months I've gotten used to getting at least 6 hours of sleep as compared to my usual 3 hours back when we were on the run. I was barely able to sleep last night, what with the interruptions and such, so I'd probably only be able to function properly in just a few more hours.

"Max…" the voice whispered again, and I recognized that it was Fang's.

"Shut up and let me sleep." I said crankily, drawing the covers higher over my shoulders. It was uncomfortable on the couch, with my shoulder digging in to the wood beneath the thin cushions and my awkward position on it, but I've had worse.

"Get up or I'll make you." He said, and there was a certain tone to his voice that made him sound like he was about to kiss me (yes, there_ is_ a tone for that) and that he was on the verge of laughing.

I rolled over on the couch and pretended that I didn't care, but I was secretly smiling and hoping that he would, in fact, try and get me to wake up, if ya know what I mean.

I suppressed the strong urge to laugh and feigned sleeping. In the back of my head I wondered if the girls could hear what was going on, but I was mostly thinking about what Fang would do to-

"Max, I want you to have my babies."

You couldn't have imagined what went through me at that moment.

"_WHAT THE FUCK?_" I said loudly and bolted into a sitting position, my eyes wide and in search of Fang, ready to drop kick him into the next decade. I knew I would regret cussing later, but that didn't matter now.

Where the hell did his brain disappear to, pulling a stunt like that? I swear, once I get my hands on him…

But he wasn't in the room.

I look up, down and all around in the room and only saw Nudge, Angel and Ella, still sleeping soundly on my bed and looking so adorable from this angle.

I sighed audibly and got up from the couch, my heart pounding and my eyes narrowed. If Fang was _hiding_, all the more his ass was _mine_. I was going to wring his neck and shake _him_-

But when I neared the end of the couch, I stopped in my tracks and took in what I saw before me.

I should've known.

There, sprawled on my bedroom floor was Iggy and Gazzy, laughing so hard that they weren't making any sound and were just crying and rolling around like idiots.

If we were cartoons, the top of my head would've exploded off right now, complete with the red face, smoke and everything.

I strode towards them quickly and started punching and kicking then, smacking away their half-hearted attempts at dodging just to punch them again.

"So…not…_FUNNY!_" I shrieked, kicking harder and punching faster.

"The look…on your face…oh my God, I should've taken a video, o-or a picture!" Iggy said in between chuckles, trying to calm himself down. Gazzy wasn't even trying to stop, clutching his stomach in pain from too much laughter.

"I'm serious you guys," I said, but Iggy only responded with, "…and with that video, I could've made millions, _maybe billions!_" he said, trying to stand up but always falling down next to Gazzy.

By this time, Angel, Nudge and Ella were all up, rubbing their eyes, yawning and staring at us weirdly.

"What's going on?" Nudge asked, scratching her head and trying to blink the sleep out of her eyes.

It took Iggy and Gazzy a few more minutes to calm down and steady their breathing. When they were finally able to repeat the story to the girls, I was silently fuming the whole time, perched on the arm of the sofa with my arms crossed over my chest.

The girls were laughing too after the story, and I groaned in frustration, falling backwards on the sofa into a lying position.

"I swear, that was _not_ cool." I said with one of my arms draped over my eyes to shield me from the morning light. Man, it was _too_ early to be up at this ungodly hour…

"But you gotta admit, your face was really funny." Iggy said.

"Yeah! You looked like this." Gazzy said and proceeded to demonstrate. He faced away from us first, and when he whipped his head towards us, he was _stunningly beautiful_ (note to sarcasm)_,_ complete with wide eyes, flared nostrils and a lopsided open mouth.

"Yeah, I was shocked, but I wasn't as ugly as _you_, thank you very much." I said sharply, my voice laced with annoyance as I hid my peeking eye under my arm again.

"Ooooohh…" I head one of the girls say while another started laughing.

"Whatever Max!" Gazzy retorted, sounding peeved.

"You guys better watch it," I told them nonchalantly, a mischievous smile forming on my face, "because that prank calls for payback."

"Oh _snap!_ Max's paybacks are _way_ worst than anybody else's paybacks. You guys are _goners_." Angel said, her voice sounding factual and serious.

At the end of that statement, the door to my room creaked open and I didn't bother to lift my arm and peep to know who it was.

"What's wrong with her?" I heard the _real_ Fang say, knowing that he was talking about me.

"She's having a bad morning because of _them_." Nudge said, and I imagined her pointing to Iggy and Gazzy.

After a few seconds of silence, I heard Gazzy and Iggy mutter, "Okay, _okay!_" before they exited the room. I could practically feel Fang's presence standing over me in the next second, and leaned even closer to me to whisper.

"Are you okay?" That was a stupid question.

"Of course I am, Fang. Why ever would you ask such a silly question when it's pretty obvious how dandy I feel." I said, trying to sound extra cheery to emphasize my sarcasm.

I heard him groan before he slipped his hard, thin arms beneath my knees and my shoulders, carrying me bridal-style. "Come on; let's get you on a real bed so you can get some rest."

I felt content and thankful towards Fang, but that soon turned to confusion when I realized that it took longer than it should have to reach my bed. I mean, it was just a few paces away from the couch. How far could it be?

I didn't bother to lift my arm from over my eyes to see where I was going. Fang wouldn't be that big of a jerk to just dump me on the floor, and if he was planning to dump me in the pool, well, I could easily take him with me.

Finally, I was dropped onto something soft and cold, and the air that came off from whatever I was dumped on smelled a lot like Fang. And the air _around_ me smelled a lot like Fang.

I _really_ liked the smell…

When I uncovered my eyes, and blinked the blur out of them, I saw that I was in Fang's room, lying on his bed.

"Hey Fang?" I said with a smile as he crossed the room to get to the other side of the bed. He lied down as well, and when he turned to face me, he said, "Yes Max?"

I was quiet for a moment and just stared into his eyes, memorizing him like this. From my peripheral view, I could see he was wearing a white v-neck shirt and dark blue checkered pajama bottoms, a choice of clothes that really surprised me. His fingers were intertwined above his broad chest, and one knee was bent.

But my gaze was mostly focused on his face, absorbing this kind of innocence he had in the mornings, and the knowing stare he was giving me that he always had when we were alone.

"Thank you." I said quickly and quietly, and turned around in bed to face the edge.

I tried falling asleep again, I really did, but even when I went under the blankets, Fang's room seemed to be air conditioned in every corner and space.

"Fang, why the heck is your room so cold?" I complained, turning on the bed to find a warmer position.

I continued to turn, the springs on the bed creaking from so much movement, when all of a sudden, I felt a certain someone's warm, strong arms wrapped around me and draw me close to him.

I gave a little gasp as heat instantly spread throughout my body, including my face. In fact, since the contrast from his room to his body was so strong, I felt like my wings were burning in between us.

"Better?" He whispered quietly into my ear, making me shiver even though I was well heated and beneath the blankets.

"Mhmm…" I mumbled back and kiss him on the jaw quickly before turning back and closing my eyes.

Okay, _now_ I felt dandy.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I ended up waking early noon, in the middle of lunch, with Fang still beside me. I turned around in his arms with a smile on my face, and kissed him on the lips quickly.

Inside I hope he knows how appreciative I am for letting me sleep in his room, and for not leaving me even when he started to get hungry. I knew this because I was _starving._

He blinked a couple of times before he looked at me and shot me one of his almost-smiles.

"Why good afternoon." He said. I smiled back.

"Oh dearest brother of mine, let's go get lunch before the flock finishes it all." I said, getting into a sitting position and stretching my arms above my head.

"Good idea, darling sister." He said with humor, and we both shot of out bed.

Just as we were exiting his room, he turned back to me and asked, "So if I'm your dearest brother, does that mean you love me most?" and the smile on his face made me want to kiss him again and kick him on the shin at the same time.

"Psh! Don't flatter yourself." I said, though my eyes were telling him otherwise.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"I'm really sorry guys. Maybe next time." I tried to cheer them up but it was clear on their faces that they were really looking forward to it.

After all the hulabaloo that happened in the morning, I promised them that we would go to the park and have some bird-kid fun (including Ella of course). And as child-ish as that sounded, you've never experienced our type of fun with us party animals. (Get it? Party animals? 'Cause we were part bird and- Okay, never mind.) We had pretty out-of-this-world adventures.

But when 4pm came, it started to rain bullets outside. Not that a little rain has ever stopped us, but the fields would just be muddy and as much as possible, we didn't want to get wet.

"Yeah, I'm sure there are still some fun, exciting stuff we could do in here." Iggy said, putting a forced smile on his face.

We all eventually had to make do with what we had and started watching movies in the entertainment room. Everyone was spread out on the sofas and chairs and watching the movie, but you could tell they weren't really into it.

I was trying to concentrate on it as well, but Fang's fingers sifting through my hair as I lay on his lap was slightly distracting, and I was just so ready to beat the guys at Flock Wars (another game we made up).

Sighing audibly, I turned back to the movie and tried to catch up on what I missed, but all I saw were moving figures, and they were talking, but nothing was adding up. I tried staring at the ceiling, but then that got boring too, and looking at my fingernails didn't seem all that exhilarating either.

_Ugghh!_ I couldn't take this anymore.

"Gazzy?" I turned my head around and called to him, making him stand up and face me with a questioning look to his face. Everyone turned to face our conversation as well because surely it would be more interesting than what was on on TV.

I sat up properly and stared at Gazzy shirt, my eyebrows scrunching up together, "What's that on your shirt?" I asked him, and even Fang was looking because no one had any idea what I was planning.

"_Whuut?_" he said, his head bent down in search for any stains on his t-shirt, and in the next second, I rushed towards him headfirst into a tackle and hauled him over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes before rushing out of the entertainment room.

Holding onto his legs, I ran swiftly down the halls, using my super speed. Gazzy was pounding on my back and wailing for me to put him down but all I did was laugh and run faster.

'_There.' _I thought, my evil grin growing bigger if it were possible, and I burst through the double doors that led to the garden when I reached it, twirling barefooted on the grass and laughing like a maniac, still carrying Gazzy.

At first he was complaining, still pounding on my back to put him down, but after a few more seconds he began to laugh, and we were both just laughing our heads off like we were crazy.

At one point, the wet grass caused me to stumble mid-twirl and we ended up sprawled on the grass, soaked with rain to the bone. And we were both still laughing.

When I lifted my head, I saw the whole flock standing on the patio underneath the shade, staring at us with wide eyes that said, _'What's the hotline to the funny farm again?'_

I giggled, _giggled_ since I was feeling so out-of character at the moment, and stood up to grab Nudge's hands.

"Max, what the heck are you doing? Max? Max, _stop!_" But it was too late, and I was already skipping backwards, dragging her along with me in the rain.

"Oh no! _MY HAIR!_ My perfectly blow-dried hair! Look what you've done, Max!" She shrieked, clawing at what was left of her styled tresses.

"Take a chill pill, Nudge. _Have fun!_" I told her, shaking her shoulders to emphasize my point, before twirling in the rain again. I saw her stomp her foot in frustration and was about to go back under the shade, but Gazzy decided to swoop right beside her and push her on the back, screaming, "TAG! YOU'RE IT!"

Since Nudge didn't expect it, and Gazzy was pretty rough for a little kid, Nudge fell on her knees and hands, the wet mud splashing onto her shirt and shorts. When she turned around, her eyes were murderous.

"GAZZY! YOU'RE GONNA PAY!" She screamed, and proceeded to chase him around our ginormous garden.

And then my insanity seemed to have infected the girls because Angel started running around in the rain too, and Ella ran straight for the pool, doing a cannonball and causing a huge splash.

"Iggy! Come join us!" Ella shouted from the pool, ignoring the fact that it was freezing cold and continuing to smile.

"Wait, I think I-" But Iggy didn't have a chance to finish because Angel snuck up behind him and pushed him into the open air, his whole body drenched within a few seconds.

I laughed at his expression and was about to coax Fang into the garden, but when I turned around and faced the patio, he wasn't there.

"Looking for someone?" a deep voice said from behind me, making me jump about a foot in the air. When I turned around and faced no one other than Fang, I plastered on a puzzled look on my face.

"Yeah, I'm looking for my boyfriend actually." I said, pretending to look around in search for him, suppressing a smile.

"Is he tall, amazing, unique and inhumanely handsome?" he asked, smirking. Yes, there was a side you've never seen of Fang. He was so _very_ full of himself.

"Nope. He's quiet, submissive and _incredibly_ humble." I said and he made a face.

"Well, he doesn't seem like your type." He said, stepping closer to me. Our faces were a few inches from each other that I could see the gold flecks in his eyes (you'd think this only happened in the movies) and the tiny drops of rain on his eyelashes.

"And you know what my type is?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, yes I do."

"Then what is my type, oh all-knowing one?" My face got even closer to his.

"Me." He said, and was about to leaning down to kiss me when-

"TAG! YOU'RE IT!" Angel shouted as she bopped Fang on the head. She giggled hysterically and flew away, while the rest of the flock were laughing and screaming stuff like, "Get a room, you two!"

I laughed at his stunned expression and began running away from him, saying over my shoulder, "You better process those thoughts faster than that, lover boy!"

At one point amidst the game, when the It, who was Iggy, was too preoccupied with chasing Ella, I stood alone by the edge of the pool, smiling at the happiness that seemed to glow from everyone.

And luckily for me, no one was able to see the hot tears that were running down my face, both from contentment and the fact that this was one of the last few moments I'd get to see them like this, happy and laughing, because they were going to know the truth soon.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Mornin' Margaret!" I greeted Mitzi by her locker Monday morning. I wasn't usually this peppy, especially on a Monday morning, except for the fact that my weekend was so great and everything seemed so…_amazingly perfect_ at the moment.

Her face was hidden behind her locker's door but I saw her visibly stiffen at the sound of my voice. "Hey C-cam…are you feeling okay now?"

I almost forgot about the incident on Thursday. "Never better." I said, trying to make the smile evident in my voice. Was _she_ okay?

"So what did you do this weekend?" she asked, still not showing her face. Her voice was all strained, like she was forcing out the words and it was hard for her to breathe.

"Uhh… I hung out with my family? That's pretty much it." I said, confused as to why she was asking. She didn't normally care about what I did.

"Oh, did you really?" her voice tinged with accusation. What the hell was her problem? "Did you _hang out_ too, with your brother _Nick?_" And when she said the words 'hang out' and 'Nick' she sounded pissed.

I was about to answer her, but at that moment she decided to slam her locker door shut and when she turned to face me, my eyes widened.

"Oh my _Gad!_" I gasped, "Mitzi, what happened to your face?" I accidentally blurted out and covered my mouth. Whoops.

But she looked like a hurricane passed through her, right after a storm struck, just before the tsunami hit.

Her usually shiny long brown hair was put into a bun haphazardly with tangled locks spilling out, her uniform was crumpled and saggy, she wore no make-up which was _very_ unlike her, and her eyes had huge dark bags underneath them, making her look like she hadn't slept at all.

She shot me a sour look and I immediately apologized.

"Whatever Cam." She said and started to walk away from me, "I'll…see you later." She said hesitantly over her shoulder.

I was left standing beside her locker, wondering if I did anything wrong (besides insult her face). I don't remember being mean to her last week and I didn't even talk to her over the weekend.

With a frown, I started walking alone to find someone else to hang out with before the bell rang. It was still 30 minutes before time and I usually walked with Mitzi to the classroom.

Never have a felt more confused.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Hey guys, did you noticed how weird Mitzi's been acting today?" I told them as we all took our seats for lunch.

I didn't know where Mitzi was, but Izzy's stopped eating with us a few weeks ago so I was left with Zach, Iggy and Bris.

"Yeah!" Zach agreed, "The whole day, she's had like this, crazed look on her face. It's _creepy_."

"I know, man. I saw it too." Iggy said.

We all faced him with blank looks on our faces. "I'm rolling my eyes, James." I told him.

"But Cam's right. She has been acting strange." Zach said, a thoughtful look on his face, "All flustered and disoriented…Especially at…" he turned to look at me, "You, Cam.

"_Me?_ I didn't do anything to her!" I exclaimed, trying to justify myself.

"Well whatever you did made her punch me in the boob." Bris said, frowning and rubbing that area.

"Is there something you aren't telling us, _Kristy?_" Iggy said with a smirk, using the girl name we gave Bris a long time ago.

"MAN boob, I meant man boob!"

I pretended to ignore Bris. "So who's volunteering to talk to that girl?" I asked everyone with a serious look on my face, running a hand through my hair.

"NOT IT!" Iggy said immediately, touching his index finger to his nose. Zach and Bris proceeded to do the same thing before I could.

"Aww! _Not fair!_ No one said we were starting yet!" I whined, "Why do I have to be the one to- OH HI MITZI! Didn't see you there!" I greeted her as she popped out of nowhere and took a seat in between Iggy and Bris. I saw Bris wince like he imagined her punching him again but Mitzi was too busy organizing the things on her tray with that same crazed look on her face.

The air around our group suddenly filled with tension, and it seemed like no one was breathing. Finally, Bris decided to try to break it.

"So Mits…that test in Lit was a killer, wasn't it-"

"Shut up Bris, I don't feel like talking." She snapped and went back to playing with her lunch. And when she snapped at Bris, something snapped inside of me.

"Mitzi, _what is your problem?_" I told her coldly, slamming my palms on the table and glaring at her. Everyone at the table stared at me with wide eyes and even Mitzi flinched, but she quickly recovered. When she raised her head to glare back at me, it was hard to keep in contact with her piercing blue eyes.

"You wanna know what my problem is, Cam? _You're_ the problem Cam, you disgusting little _hoebag-_"

"HEY!" All the boys reprimanded Mitzi at the same time, while I stared wide-eyed in shock.

Never, in the 16 years that I've been living, has anybody called or had enough guts to call me a hoebag or any other words pertaining to the meaning. And I've never acted like one, anyway.

Maximum Ride would've lunged across the table and strangled Mitzi until she took it back.

But I was in high school, and my name was Cameron Ride, so I did what any normal girl would've done.

"Mitzi, did I do something to you? Because I've been everything but mean to you-"

"Oh stop pretending, _you freak!_" I winced at the name, "I can't believe you! A-and your brother! _Oh God…_It's sick! _You're sick, Cameron!_ Don't tell me you've done James too, you _slut!_"

And that's when I made the connection. Across the round table, I could see that Iggy did too as his sightless eyes widened.

Oh _crap_.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**Forgive me** if this wasn't the reaction you were expecting. It's hard to imagine your best friend suddenly dating her brother, but I tried my best and this was the reaction that first came to mind: disgust and shock.

**Anticipate a oneshot** that I'll be posting on Christmas :) It's called 'Ho Ho Hopefully' and I think it's superbly sweet, I was squealing while writing it. Well, _I _thought it was sweet. :P

And guys, **please read and review!** :D See? I knew we could do more than 5 reviews! This time, **I expect **_**at least**_** 7**. And those aren't high expectation 'cause I've seen others ask for like, 20. :| Haha!

OMG next chapter will totally- Okay, I won't spoil it for you. ;)

Make me proud guys! **Review!**

Peace out,

.: Tiffany :.


	25. The Least Expected

**Happy New Year guys!**

Thank you **HEYHEY**, **xxSurfingDreamsxx**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **fireflies371**, **Bubbley-chan**, **DancingintheRayne** and **mimim1010** for reviewing!

This'll be the **last update in a while** because school's starting again and I've gotta take this last term seriously. :-B

From now on, this story is going to take on a much _darker _theme. All the fun and games are over and now that all the signs and climbing action are done, we've reached the climax. So from this chapter on, things are going to be a lot serious. Sorry 'bout that.

Man, you guys are gonna hate me for this…

**EDIT**: P*ina. I forgot that they lived in Connecticut. Sorry for sending two alerts. I have another story that's setting is in Massachusetts and I kinda confused them. :P Sorry!

**EDIT 2**: Ayy nako. Thank you xxSurfingDreamsxx for pointing out _that_ mistake. Sorry again for sending yet _another _alert.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"_Oh stop pretending, you freak!" I winced at the name, "I can't believe you! A-and your brother! Oh God…It's sick! You're sick, Cameron! Don't tell me you've done James too, you slut!"_

_And that's when I made the connection. Across the round table, I could see that Iggy did too as his sightless eyes widened._

_Oh crap._

A few people sitting around us were starting to stare, and her voice grew even louder, growing more psychotic that Iggy and Bris had to hold her down. Iggy was telling her gently to stop, repeating her name over and over but I was the only one who figured that he was trying to drown out her words to everybody else. He shot me a pointed look, and I knew that I had to get her to _stop._

"Mitzi? _Mitzi!_ Let me talk to you." I told her gently at first and reached towards her, but she flinched from my hand. I tried to ignore the hurt I felt and tried a different tactic.

I stood up and grabbed her wrist harshly, dragging her out of the cafeteria through the side door. Luckily, she was screaming for me to let go of her, not about the things she knew. Finally, when we reached the wide walkway in between 2 buildings, I let go and faced her, my eyes hard.

She looked like she was going to try to make a run for it, so I told her, "Don't even try, Mitzi." Her eyes continued to dart left and right, and then shot towards where I held her wrist. She was calculating my strength, and when she sighed deeply, I knew she gave up. Clenching her jaw, she looked up again; surprisingly brave enough to look me straight in the eye. But then again, she didn't know who I was and what I was capable of.

"Mitzi, I didn't do anything to you and last Thursday we were _fine_. What _wrong _with you?" I said, using hand gestures. I was about to reach for her arm again, but she narrowed her eyes even more and took a step back from me.

"What's _my _problem? What's _your_ problem, Cam?" she spat, her voice filled with disgust, "All along you've been _lying _to me. Cam, I thought we were _best friends?_"

I wouldn't say our friendship has reached 'best friend' level, despite knowing her for 5 months. I just don't consider a lot of people 'best friend' material, and the only person who's ever been a best friend to me was Fang. Not even the flock, just Fang.

Wasn't a best friend someone you told your secrets to? Someone you could tell everything to?* Of course I wasn't going to tell her that; it might just piss her off more.

"Of course you're my friend, Mitzi. And I haven't been lying to you." I assured her, trying to make my voice gentle.

"Just _shut…UP! _I'm not just talking about you lying to me! I can't believe you've been dating your brother! Your _brother_, Cam! Do you know how _disgusting_ that is? Do you know how sickening the concept makes me feel? Sure it happens in the movies and in books but no. I don't think it's _romantic_ or _sweet_ in real life. In real life, it's _gross_, and disgusting, and I can't believe you've been doing this all along!" she finished, and my eyes widened because my suspicions were correct: _she knew._

"Mitzi, I-"

"And you told me you had a boyfriend back in Arizona! What about Felix, _huh?_ Or have you forgotten about him and forever let him pine over you while you make out with you _brother?_ And what about _his_ girlfriend back in Arizona? Do you even value the meaning of a relationship? _What?_ Just because your boyfriend's miles and miles away you resorted to sucking faces with _Nick?_ What? Is James a secret boyfriend _too_, and does Nick know?" she shrieked, but thankfully no one was around to hear.

I never told you guys, but a few months back I accidentally let slip I had a boyfriend, back in Arizona. When they asked me what his name was, I was about to say Fang, and quickly changed it to Felix at the last second.

Lame, I know. Iggy wouldn't stop teasing me for _days._

"Mitzi, listen to m-"

"No Cam. I'm going to tell the others about you sick, twisted plans and your sick twisted mind and your _little-_"

"MITZI. SHUT. UP." I yelled. She was cut short with her mouth left open, and I used this time to shove her up against the wall, pinning her shoulders down harshly. She struggled at first and tried hitting me, but I caught her clenched fist and slammed it on the wall as well. Her eyes widened in fear and she pressed back into the wall.

"I'm sorry I lied to you, okay? I'm so sorry, but I had to." I said, making her look into my eyes, "Nick isn't my brother. In fact, not even Isabella and Tyler are my siblings. We're all _adopted._ Its funny people thought we were actually blood-related since we don't look _anything_ alike, but we've been a family for so long I didn't think we'd have to explain or tell people. It's not easy telling others your parents are dead, alright?

"James is really a family friend whose parents are working abroad. They didn't want James to have to keep moving all the time, so he started to live with us, as well as another family friend named Krystal. And I've never dated James, _okay?_ He's like a brother to me, and that would be _disgusting._

"But I have been dating Nick. We've been together for 2 years now and I lied to you about Felix. Nick _is _Felix, and I was referring to myself when I told you Nick had a girlfriend in Arizona. I'm _his_ girlfriend, and he's _my_ boyfriend, alright?

"I'm sorry I lied to you. But in all our papers he's declared as my brother, and we have to pretend to have a brother-sister relationship. I haven't been going around dating multiple guys at the same time and I don't do anything…_nasty_ either, _okay?_

"But go ahead! Tell everyone in school about us! As if it's going to make you _feel_ any better! Nothing good is going to come out of it." I finished, breathless from talking so fast and long. I was panting, and smoke was clouding on front of our faces. I dropped my hands from her shoulders, my energy spent.

"Do your parents know about this?" she asked quietly.

"Yes, even James knows. You could ask him." I said, praying mentally that she would buy that pathetic alibi.

She was quiet for a few moments, not meeting my eyes and looking like she was deep in thought. Finally, she looked up and said, "You could've told me the truth, you know. I would've understood."

"I had to lie in the beginning! It's not like we were friends ever since the first day of school, when I was introduced as his _sister_." I retorted.

"Well you could've said it months after. I still would've understood instead of finding out like this. All this time…after I've told you countless times how hot your brother looked, I bet you were laughing at me behind my back…" She said.

"I wasn't laughing at you! And you're right; this isn't like in the books or the movies where it's romantic and sweet for 2 step-siblings who live together to fall in love like in your vampire books. It's unorthodox and people are going to think it's weird. I can't go around telling everyone!"

"It wasn't going to _be_ everyone; it was just going to be me, and your friends."

We were both quiet for a moment, and the cold was starting to seep through our clothes. I actually saw her shiver too, so I sped the conversation up. I had to _know._

"Are you going to tell anyone?" I asked quietly, tense for her reply.

"Maybe." She said and I froze. Then she was quiet again for a few seconds, but after a while she said, "Nah…I just…I don't think we should hang out together for a while."

"S-sure." I said and was a tiny bit sad at this. I know you all probably think I'm heartless for only being a 'tiny bit sad', and I know this might sound cold, but the truth is, I wasn't _that_ close to her. Sure, we had fun and hung out and my lunch group would definitely be the first humans, after my family and flock, that I would save if the world was ending, but they weren't important enough for me to spend so much time thinking about, or important enough for me to receive their acceptance or trust. I could only ever really depend on my flock.

"You can't imagine how and insane and messed up I've been over the weekend, just…_thinking_ about it." She laughed bitterly and shook her head, "Panicking and not getting enough sleep…Man, was I chocked up and ready to burst."

"I'm sorry, Mitzi." I apologized for the nth time. She just nodded.

"Thank you." I told her with finality, hoping that she would keep to her word and keep this a secret. She just sighed and raised her eyebrows once in response.

While walking back to the cafeteria's door in silence, the Voice in my head rang ominously loud and clear.

_Move. Connecticut isn't a safe place for you and your flock anymore._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"It was _horrible_, Fang. Our covers might've been blown!" I said, exiting my bathroom with my brown hair dripping over my tank top after my evening shower.

Finally, the day's come to an end and Fang and I were talking in my room, with Fang lying down on my bed, his ankles crossed and his arms behind his head.

"Did…did you hear what was happening? Did you hear the story I made up?" I asked, walking to the other side of my bed and snuggling up next to him. He didn't make a move to pull me closer, but he just kissed the top of my head.

"Yeah, I heard it all." He said, but his voice sounded…_distracted_, "I'm sorry I didn't get to help you out, though I knew you could handle it yourself."

I nodded against his chest, though I knew his thoughts were somewhere else. Turning my head, I faced him and asked, "What wrong?"

"I'm just…" he started, his eyes hard, "I'm just waiting for you to tell me about what happened during PE." He said.

'_Oh, that.'_ I knew _exactly_ what he was talking about, but I didn't want to make it seem like it was a big deal.

"Fang, it was nothing. I fell asleep on the bleachers during your soccer game. It's nothing." I said, my voice trying to convince him that things were alright.

"Max, I may have been in the game, but don't think I didn't notice you _faint_. You weren't sitting _on_ the bleachers; you were standing _by_ them, and if it weren't for Iggy, you would've fallen flat on your face." He said, his voice tinged with anger now that he growled the last few words.

I drew back from the tone of his voice and stared at him. "Look, I can _explain-_"

"Oh _really?_" he said coldly, "Could you also explain to me how you started coughing _blood_ during Math and didn't bother to tell me about that either?"

I gasped in surprise, "How did you-"

"How did I _know?_ I have eyes, Max! And don't think I haven't been keeping an eye on _you_." He was glaring now, and I was kinda scared. I hated it when Fang would get mad; he was always likely to hurt something, or someone. "You're my best friend; I'm always going to look out for you. And I don't appreciate you keeping secrets from me."

I should've hidden my bloody palm better, should've wiped it on my skirt, or clenched my fist instead of staring at it like an idiot for a few seconds. And when I fainted during PE, I didn't think it was all that obvious.

Then again, Fang wasn't stupid. It was only a matter of time that he would figure things out. _I_ was stupid.

I closed my eyes and exhaled sharply. "I'm sorry, okay? Can we please not fight right now? Today was just… so _bad, _I don't want it to get any worse." I pleaded.

When I opened my eyes, he was staring at me and nodded a small, tiny nod. I could tell he was still angry, but hopefully he was just going to forget about it. I sighed in relief.

While getting back into a lying position, I told him my plan, "You know, I think we should move again. Out of Connecticut, ya know? I was thinking Seattle, what do you think?" I turned back to face him with a smile on my face.

But he wasn't smiling back; in fact, he looked mad _again_. I didn't understand because me and Fang would always love taking turns picking where to move to next.

"I think your crazy, that's what." He said, and I shot him a faux irritated look, but that quickly slid out of my face when I realized that he was serious.

"What? Look, we're not safe here anymore. Mitzi found out! Who knows who else will figure us out?" I defended myself, raising my voice slightly.

"It's_ just_ Mitzi. In fact, she doesn't even know about the whole wings ordeal, just the fact that we're together. And she seems to understand anyway. I don't see what the problem is." On the other hand, his voice was calm, but you could tell he was starting to get irritated.

"You don't – _you don't see?_" I got into a sitting position, my eyes wide and disbelieving, "It's _dangerous_, Fang! And the CSM may know the truth but they're the good guys!"

He started to sit up too. "So now Mitzi's on the dark side?"

And the hint of accusation in his voice made me angrier. "I dunno! Maybe! Her parents could be working for Itex, or one of their sub companies. Who really knows!" I exclaimed, "Remember the _last_ time we trusted humans? Remember _Anne?_ The school we attended was swarming with Itex creeps! That could be us again, if we don't think ahead and _move._"

"Max, you're being too paranoid." And at those words, my heart stopped beating altogether, and my breath caught in my throat.

I couldn't _believe_ he said that. If there was anybody in the world as paranoid as I was, it was Fang. He could actually be even more paranoid than _me._ We always saw eye to eye.

I tried a different tactic. "Besides, the Voice told me-"

"Oh, here we go again with the Voice! What did it tell you this time, Max?" he said bitterly, throwing his hands up in exasperation.

"Look, the Voice has never been wrong, _okay?_ It's helped a lot in the past 2 years-" I couldn't believe I was actually defending the Voice, but I was desperate for him to understand, and all I was saying was actually true.

"Sometimes it's _okay_ to listen to It, but if the Voice told you to jump off a cliff with your wings tucked in, would you do it?" he raised his voice even more, scaring me. But I refused to back down. I crossed my arms over my chest, and just to piss him off further I said, "Maybe I would."

He narrowed his eyes. "Max, if you're that worried, we could drop out of school!" he said.

I jumped out of the bed now, standing at the side, "It runs _deeper_ than that, Fang! Don't you _see_ how much we're putting the flock at risk! We have to leave!" I cried desperately, trying to hold back the tears. Oh God, I can't believe I was going to _cry._

He stood too and started to shout, "You're being selfish, Max! They want to _learn_, and they have _friends _here-"

"Oh _I'm_ being selfish? You think I'm not tired of moving _every fucking time?_ I'm doing this all for the flock, for _us!_ And I'm not _making_ them give it all up for a life on the run again; I'm just _asking_ that we move to another place. They can make new friends, and they can still go to school. I'm not going to take that away from them." I retorted, clenching and unclenching my fists because I was just so…so _angry._

"What if they want to have friends for longer than half a year? And what if they want to stay in the same school and finish there? Did you ever think about _that?_" He was breathing raggedly, and I knew ever second of us arguing was hurting the both of us.

At that, the energy seemed to drain out of me, completely spent from yelling and fighting, "All the time, Fang. _All the time…_" I told him quietly, "But I'm sorry we're not normal, and I'm sorry things have to be like this, but it just does okay!" I continued to look at Fang though I couldn't see him clearly anymore because my eyes were watering, watering so bad that I tried hard not to blink in fear of letting the tears fall. I didn't want Fang to know how much it hurts.

The battle seemed to rush out of him too and he sighed loudly. "Max, you're being ridiculous." He said, trying one last time. But I wasn't having it. I couldn't argue with him any longer.

"Get out." I said, my voice shaking but firm.

"_What?_"

"Get out, Fang." I repeated, pointing towards my door. "I may have asked for your opinion, but I'm still flock leader and _I_ make the decisions. Now _get out._" I growled the last few words, hoping he'd get out faster so that he wouldn't see me break down.

He stared at me hard for a few seconds, his eyes penetrating and as dark as the night sky, before he turned around swiftly and stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

And once he was finally out the door, I fell on my bed and started crying, the sobs painful in my chest and my whole body feeling numb and immobile.

I couldn't believe what just happened.

Sure Fang and I would argue sometimes, but never like this. Never to the point where we would shout at each other. Never to the point where I felt like crying. And never to the point where we didn't solve things.

My heart ached with these thoughts and I found it difficult to breathe, curling up into a ball on the covers of my bed and trying not to cry too loudly.

I didn't understand why he wasn't on my side. He knew more than anyone else in the flock why it was so important to keep moving! He knew we all hated it but we couldn't do anything about it! Why wasn't he seeing it my way? Was he blinded by the luxuries and ease of our life here, because he should know that it wasn't going to last.

And that's how I fell asleep: curled up atop the covers, trying not to think about my day but failing miserably, and crying until I lost consciousness.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The rest of the week passed without incident.

There weren't even any joy-filled-flock moments despite the epic weekend because the rest of them figured out that Fang and I were having a sort of 'time out.' I was starting to miss Fang by the next day, glancing at him at the corner of my eye whenever I could, and a couple of times I spotted him doing the same thing, but neither of us would make the first move to say sorry. That's how much pride we have.

I missed being greeted by one of Fang's rare smiles in the morning whenever I would walk down the stairs. I missed the way our hands would brush against each others right before we entered school, reminding me that on this day, whenever we would ignore each other, it was all just an act. I missed the excitement that seemed to shine in his eyes whenever we got home, and he would ask me all about my day. And I missed our conversations at night, right before we went to bed, filled with everything and nothing important to talk about.

Throughout the week I also had more fainting, headache and nosebleed episodes, though I learned to control them better, so I tried my best not to make it too obvious. Hopefully the flock didn't find out and hopefully this would all just be over soon.

I know you're all probably thinking that these were the effects of my expiration date, but something deep within me told me it was something else. Another problem I had to solve…

I thought that life after that argument would have gone back to being dull and boring, where everything was routine and there would be no more strange misadventures.

But on Monday the week after, I found out just how wrong I was and things got even worse.

I just finished up my homework and was about to go to sleep. I was standing just by my bed actually, sighing with remorse about how I had completely missed Valentine's Day, when the flock minus Fang entered my room without knocking (though we never really had manners and I was getting used to it anyways). They all filed in with blank looks on their faces, but at the moment I hadn't figured what they were all up to. When they formed a sort of semi-circle by the door like they had choreographed this, I chuckled and raised an eyebrow. "Whoa, okay. I'm guessing this is a flock meeting. What's up?" I said, a hint of laughter in my voice. But when Angel spoke up, I knew this was serious.

"We need to talk."

"Sure, what about? I was thinking we should fly east next Friday to see-" I tried for a casual conversation, but Angel quickly interrupted.

"Max, we need to talk about what you're doing." Her voice was hard, sounding very unlike the 7-year old girl that I brought up. I looked towards Nudge and Gazzy, taking in their just as serious faces and their determined stares. When I looked towards Iggy, I observed his rigid stance with his arms crossed over his chest, the mean look on his face that he got whenever he was facing a battle.

"What I'm _doing?_ Wait…what's going on?" I asked, starting to be afraid for myself now, though I was trying not to show it. Angel hesitated for a moment, looking to the ceiling to figure out where to start. When she spoke, her voice was unsure.

"The thing is Max, we've noticed over the past few days-"

"Just cut to the chase, Angel." I said coldly now to match hers, wondering where this was going. This wasn't going to be a 'how-was-your-day' conversation and I could already tell by the looks on each of their faces that this wasn't going to be pretty.

I saw her flinch from my voice, but she brushed it off.

"Max, we don't want you as our leader anymore." And if that wasn't painful enough, "And I'm not just talking about myself. _Everyone_ agrees with me."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

*Total hypocrite, huh Max?

**So which argument do you think is more justifiable?** Fang's or Max's? Take your sides now!

I know I'm 6 days late, but if you want something to make you feel better, check out the Christmas oneshot I posted called '**Ho Ho Hopefully**'. :D Apparently it was a hit, so…go cheer yourself up!

_Please read and review!_ I'm totally disappointed in the lack of reviews compared to how many people actually read this. :( I want **at least 8 reviews** this time. Is that so hard?

**Review, review, review!** And honestly, **tell me what you think.** :) Not that I'm ungrateful to reviews that tell me, "Great story! Keep up the good work!" But if you really **don't understand** some parts of the story, or if you think there's **something I could improve on**, just tell me. But don't be rude of course. ;)

Peace out,

.: Tiffany :.


	26. Kicking and Screaming

Hey ya'll!

Thank you **Avstories**, **Max**, **Bubbley-Chan**, **MaeWithWings97**, **xxSurfingDreamsxx**, **Meme**, **DancingintheRayne**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **YourBooksAreMyDrug**, **GBlock**, **Drea**, **5253Racer** and **fireflies371 **for reviewing the last chapter! :D

Sorry if this took a while; I hope you enjoy it anyways. :)

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"_Max, we don't want you as our leader anymore." And if that wasn't painful enough, "And I'm not just talking about myself. Everyone agrees with me."_

To say Angel was blunt was an understatement. She said this all quickly, her eyes steady on mine, but by the way she was clenching her fist, you could tell she was scared.

And at those words, my mind went blank.

I couldn't think of anything to say; I couldn't think of anything _at all_. My breath came out of me in a _whoosh_ and I felt as though a hand had pulled out my heart from my chest harshly, leaving a gapping, bloody, unbearably _painful_ open wound in its wake, incapable of healing with the edges tattered and mangled. My body stood frozen, numb with pain and horror, and I felt my hands start to shake that I had to clench them tightly to stop. Tight enough for my nails to dig into my palms, overlapping this pain with the greater one.

I heard Iggy exclaim in the background, a silent protest, but all I could hear was the blood rushing to my ears and my uneven breathing.

"Nudge…" I turned towards her and saw tears in her eyes, "_Gazzy?_" I said breathlessly, pleading with my eyes for my little trouper to back me up. He looked miserable, his bottom lip protruding, but he kept quiet.

"Max, I hope you understand-" Angel began, but now the words were coming to me and I was _furious._

"_Understand?_ How in _holy hell_ do you think I'd _understa_-"

"Told you she'd freak out…" I heard Gazzy whisper in the background. I would've glared at him if my attention wasn't solely on his sister, my _baby_, the one who was breaking my heart into a million pieces.

"Max, I love you." She said, sadness visible on her face, "You know I love you and that I don't mean you any harm, but you're not fit for the job and I think it's time I took over."

I was so ready to rip her throat out, I really could've. "_You?_ Angel, for once in your life could you just _stop_ it? Stop trying to take my place! Just _STOP!_" I shouted. The only thing keeping me from hurting her was the voice in my head that was reminding me that I loved her too, and the fact that my body couldn't seem to move.

"Max, _please_. We get what you were trying to do. We appreciate all the efforts you put into those past few days. You made us _happy_ again. You made us laugh and smile and you made us feel _normal_. We get that. But all throughout, we could see what was happening to you." She said, "You're growing _weak_, Max. We can all see it. And I know you could see it too. Brain attacks, sudden fainting spells, _vomiting?_ Don't think we haven't noticed, Max. We aren't stupid. And this isn't like you. And I know you know someone who's sickly and weak can't lead the flock. It has to be someone capable."

I wasn't processing what she was saying. All I was seeing was red, and all I was hearing was gibberish. She may have been right, but I couldn't think straight at the moment because I was just so _angry_.

"Oh, so now you think _you're_ capable?" I spat, my eyes burning into hers. She was scared to look straight into them, all of them were, but eventually Angel brought her head up to face me, bunching up her skirt into her fists like they were anchoring her to stay rooted and fight for her belief.

"I _know_ I am. And even when you were the leader we weren't doing _anything_. We just kept going to different Itex branches and doing little damage. Those were poor decisions. What do we accomplish doing that?"

I ignored the stab to my now non-existent heart and shot back, "And your plans are _so_ much better?"

"At least we'd actually be doing something." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"I was trying the best I can." I told them.

"But apparently, your best wasn't good enough!" She shouted, and I was ready to double over on the floor, unable to bear the pain where my heart once was.

"Angel, you're not meant to be leader. At least not yet. You don't even know the first thing!" I cried, blinking back tears. I couldn't _cry_; not yet at least.

"Why? Because I'm _young?_ To some level you will always be better than me, I know that. But I've observed, Max. I've learned from your mistakes and I know that I'll be better than you one day." She said, starting to get angry herself. It was as though she needed to prove to me that she was worth something greater, that she _had_ to be better than me.

I couldn't believe this was _my_ flock, _my_ Angel. Angel, the little girl who I held in my arms just last week when she had a nightmare. Angel, my baby who always depended on me.

Nothing was making sense.

I had no more wit left in me, no more argument. We all didn't know what was making me weak, and she was right about leaders being strong, but it just hurt _so_ much…

"Angel…_how could you do this?_" I said, the sadness clear in my voice that everyone was holding back from rushing to me, or crying, or telling Angel to _stop_.

"I'm _sorry_, but it's what's best. You haven't been making good decisions-"

"So then maybe I shouldn't have rescued your sorry ass from the School, huh Angel?" I said with steel, though I was only barely able to hold myself together.

"I'm talking about the present, Max. You were great before but things have changed." She said back, her voice filled with sadness but she stayed firm on her decision. They all were.

"_Clearly._"

As we stared each other down, Fang decided to join the Flock meeting at this moment, entering the room and asking Iggy what was going on. _'Looks like nobody thought to invite him._' From my peripheral view, I could see Iggy explaining it to him with wild hand gestures and a panicked look on his face.

"Max…I can learn how to become a leader, but you can't learn how to become stronger. And right now I'm thinking about the flock and I believe that I'm doing the right thing. You don't seem like you even _care_ anymore." She said, trying to justify herself. I choked on the gasp that I took, not believing my ears.

"_Don't care anymore?_" I exclaimed, "You have _no_ idea. You have no _fucking _idea, do you? You don't know what's going on! You don't care enough to find out what's going on! You gave me a trial without even giving me a chance to defend myself or know the truth!" I said, my voice growing more and more insane, "And now you're telling me you're thinking about what's best for the flock or is this really just about _you_?

"You're a _selfish_ person, Angel. And you always have been. You only do things for yourself or if you benefit from it.

"I know you love the flock just as much as I do, but _honestly_, would you really think about the flock before yourself if anything happens? Will you hesitate to sacrifice yourself if it means saving at least _one_ of them?

"When you're leader, the flock will _become_ your life. When you're leader, your _own_ life will mean _nothing_ to you. Can you protect the flock whilst saving your own skin? And will you be alert enough to stay watch from 2 to 4am and at the same time think about what your family will eat in the morning?" I said wildly, frothing at the mouth from my speech. Everyone was looking at me with sadness, thinking about what I'd just said and knowing that I was _right_.

"Give the job to Fang. Give it to Iggy, or even Nudge. Just not you, sweetie. Not _you._"

While at the same time I was trying to prove a point, I wanted her to _hurt_ just as much as she hurt me. I wanted her to feel pain and suffering, using words that I knew would inflict these.

"Nothing you can say will change my mind, Max. I believe in what I'm doing." She said, though she started to sound like an injured child.

"Sometimes you shouldn't depend on what you believe in because it could all just be a lie. Take the flock for instance." I said, trying to hurt them as well.

"_Fang…_" I said, and turned towards him, acknowledging him for the first time and asking him through my eyes to back me up. It didn't matter that we were fighting at the moment because this was the one time we had to set aside our feelings are really think about what was happening. I _needed_ Fang to be my best friend at this moment, and back me up no matter what. Needed him to be on my side and help me through this, just like he would save me for any other reason.

He was quiet for a few moments, his decision either siding with his best friend or the rest of his family. All our eyes were on him, but his were only on mine, unreadable and depthless.

"Max," he said my name, and I winced because I felt I knew what he was already going to say, "Trust me when I say I want to defend you, I _really_ do…" he said, his eyes filled with indifference, "But I _can't_."

The word 'can't' seemed to have echoed in my room, replaying over and over in my head as I stared at them all, stared at Fang. And if the wound in my chest wasn't bad enough, the word 'can't' was like acid, pouring all over the wound and eating at the edges even more.

"You can't, or you won't, Fang? Because those 2 words mean completely different things." I said, my voice hoarse and spilling with all my emotions.

They were all sad, fighting the battles inside their heads and over-working their brains with thoughts of what just happened. But none of them were speaking up; it was obvious what their decisions were.

"Well I can't ask you to want me to continue to be the leader, so I guess there's only one thing left to say." I said, devoid of emotions now. I still wanted to cry, but I was saving that for when I was alone, so that I could wallow in self-pity and not have to worry about my image.

And if I was going to be kicked out, I might as well walk away with what pride and dignity I had left.

"You guys better hope you won't regret this." I said coldly, my words loud and clear, before I made my way to my balcony and shot off into the sky without looking back.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

After Max made her dramatic exit, a deafening silence swept throughout the room. No one moved and no one talked. Her leaving shattered everyone's courage to stand up to her, and now they just felt hallow and remorseful. Now it didn't seem like such a good idea.

Angel hastily wiped away the hot tears that were spilling down her cheeks, now facing _her_ flock with a forced brave face.

Nudge started sobbing uncontrollably, sinking to her knees and covering her face with her hands. And Gazzy was crying himself, confused whether to comfort Nudge or start breaking down too. They were all so guilty and in need of reassurance, but the only person who would ever really make things okay was Max, and she wasn't there.

"G-guys, it's oka-" Angel started, but Fang's voice interrupted her.

"_What've I done?_" He whispered quietly, his voice hallow, standing a few feet from all of them and staring at his hands with a blank expression on his face. His voice held no emotions and it scared them because he's never sounded so…_lifeless_.

Angel was about to talk again, was going to try to get everyone to hold themselves together when Iggy interrupted her this time.

"Angel, what the _hell_ were you _thinking?_" he shouted, red in the face and pacing the length of Max's room.

"Iggy-"

"You told me we were going to talk to her, not flippin' _kick her out of the flock!_ I didn't agree to any of this and you set me up!" he said, tugging at his strawberry blonde hair with rage, "And now she thinks we're all against her!"

He was _pissed_. So pissed he wanted to break something. He didn't understand why everyone was being so _stupid_.

"Well, if you didn't agree, you didn't protest hard enough!" she replied, "And we didn't kick her out, Ig! She's still in the flock, she's just not leader anymore."

"Well you might as well have kicked her out; you _destroyed_ her! Angel, I can't believe you did this!" he was breathing raggedly, so _angry_ he wanted to _scream_, "And _you_," he turned on his heel and faced Fang, clenching and unclenching his fists, "_You_ were supposed to back her up! When no one else listened to me, it was supposed to be you who knock some sense into everyone and tell them they were being _stupid!_" he hoped his sightless eyes were burning holes into Fang, "You were supposed to be her best friend, Fang."

"_I…_" his voice was still quiet as he continued to stare at his open palms.

"You know, I don't _care_ if you were having 'relationship problems' because that's none of _my_ business, as long as that doesn't cloud your decisions." Iggy spat.

"Iggy, she knows she's still part of the flock! She'll come back!" Angel interjected, starting to cry again. Iggy's words were scaring her, scaring her because they might be true.

"Oh _does_ she? And will she _really_ come back?" he said, "Well all know she just forces herself to be strong, but do we really know how much she's hurting right now?" he looked at all of them, not seeing but hoping they would understand.

Angel gasped and defended herself. "You're overreacting, Iggy! She'll be back later, I-"

"Angel," Nudge said sadly, "She's not coming back." her voice sounded broken, looking up from her palms_._ Nudge finally realized that what Iggy said was true.

It was true. Maybe their decisions of overthrowing her seemed fine when they all talked about it, but they didn't even stop to think about the consequences. Think about how Max would feel and think. They were only thinking about the present, but what would happen afterwards? They never thought she would feel this much pain, never thought she'd _break._

"Iggy's right." Fang spoke up again, stepping forward now and looking at each and every one of them. His face was bleak and empty, his only reason for living gone. A flood of emotions were going through him, confusing him, but the moment Max jumped off her balcony _regret_ stood out from the rest of them and he knew then that he had made a huge mistake.

"And that's why we have to go look for her, before she does something she'll regret."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Once I jumped off the balcony railing, I flew fast and hard, not even knowing which direction I was going and what I was going to do.

I just had to be away from that place. Away from _them_.

I was using my warp speed, flying blindly since the tears spilling blurred my vision, but nothing mattered right now. Not even safety was important right now.

I screamed, screamed multiple times actually. Luckily, at the rate I was going, my cried were snatched by the wind and nobody would even know it was Maximum Ride shouting her sorrows away. That would just be too pitiful.

I didn't know how far I'd gone. I probably flew a few states over, maybe, but I didn't really care. If I'd reached the Philippines I still wouldn't care.

I just don't care anymore.

When one minute I was a speeding blur in the sky, the next I had crashed onto a tall tree, probably looking comical. I slammed my shoulder really hard on the bark, and I cried out in pain before sinking onto one of the branches, holding onto myself to keep from falling apart.

All my joints hurt, my eyes were tired from crying, my throat was sore from screaming, my nose was running, my sinuses were throbbing, my head was splitting, my lungs were on fire, my wings hurt like hell, and yet all these were nothing compared to the emotional pain going through me.

Curling up on the branch, bawling my eyes out and cradling myself, a million thoughts occupied my mind.

How could all these bad things happen at once? Everything was going just fine last week and I was really going to tell them about my expiration date already, I was.

I was planning on calling them all together, breaking the news, and convincing myself with their reassurances that I would be fine while we all cried and sobbed together, hugging one another.

That was the plan. That was how things were going to be.

I definitely did not expect to argue with Fang over moving, and being overthrown by Angel, my baby.

What gave them reason to do this to me? I've been all but mean to them! And I've done so much for them. I raised them, I taught them, I fed them and I _loved_ them, and this was how they were repaying me? What were their intentions all along? Was it really love, or did they just use me to survive, and when they already knew how, they would just kick me out?

'_I could only ever really depend on my flock._' I once said. Boy, was I fooling myself.

I wasn't sure of anything anymore. I wasn't sure if all those times Angel would tell me she loved me best she would be lying. I wasn't sure if all those late night conversations with Nudge was just a pretense. And I wasn't sure if Fang really loved me like I loved him, when all this time he might've just been putting up with me to save himself.

Now I could never look at them the same way again. All the jokes, the conversations, the experiences of our life on the run together…they seemed insignificant and meaningless. _Unreal_. They were memories that were beautiful, but painful at the same time.

Angel's sweet smiles would always have a double-meaning. Nudge's chatter would seem scripted. Gazzy's jokes would seem hurtful. Iggy's laughs would make me wince. And Fang's kindness would just be unbearable.

Oh God, it just hurt _so_ much…

I don't think anybody would understand what I felt at that moment. It was like being kicked out of your group of best friends that you've known your whole life for some shallow reason. Like being disowned from the family you gave your all to. Like a mother, whose own children and husband were sick of her, and they decided to just…_break her heart_, leaving her wondering what she did wrong.

I clung to the tree branch for dear life, screaming and shrieking until my throat was sore and my voice was hoarse. The salty tears leaking from my eyes soaked everything, even dripping into my mouth and onto my wounds from the twigs that scrapped me, reminding me that this was all real and not just a horrible nightmare.

I was really alone now. There was nobody to comfort me.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Depressing, I know.

**Note to all:** The next chapter will be slightly boring, though I personally _hate_ stories that just skip a boatload of _important_ emotional crap and thoughts so I hope you realize how much time and effort I put into typing it and will review it no matter what your thoughts are. :)

I hope to get at least **10 reviews** for this chapter. C'mon guys, I know you can do it and I know a bunch of people read this story! **Tell me** your thoughts and opinions.

Btw, who can't wait for **Angel: AMRN**? I know I can't. I'm excited; I might get an advanced copy.

Peace out,

.: Tiffany :.


	27. Halfbrother vs Stepbrother

How're you doing, guys? :)

Thank you **DancingintheRayne**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **MaeWithWings97**, **Kamai000**, **fireflies371**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **Bubbley-chan**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **Max**, **Birdwatched**, **Eurwen de Vrill**, **5253Racer** and **GreenNIghtRose** for reviewing! You guys are _ah-may-zing._ Seriously.

I if didn't reply to review I am so sorry. Busy busy bee, that's me! :P

So I guess, here's chapter 27!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I gasped audibly, my eyes flying wide open as I scrambled into a crouch on the tree branch in panic.

At first I didn't understand where I was and how I got here. Weren't the flock and I staying in a safe house in Connecticut, with my mom and Ella? Were we still on the run or was school, and Zach, and everything all just a dream?

I should've been in a comfortable huge bed with white and grey sheets. I should've been up hours ago, taking a shower to get ready for school.

But then I looked down and took in my powder blue tank top and mismatching floral shorts, remembered that these were my pajamas from last night, and not clothes that I would normally wear when I was on the run, and the night's events came flooding back to me, almost knocking me off the branch I was perched on.

The flock telling me I wasn't strong enough, storming off in anger, hitting a tree and falling asleep.

The flock really kicked me out. I was alone, on my own.

I looked up and around me, searching for the rest of my family in denial, expecting to see Iggy sprawled over two branches as he slept, or seeing Fang up and ready, smiling in only the way Fang can to signal that we should wake up the rest of the kids.

But all I saw was more branches, long, thick and holding no other bird-kid but myself, with the sunlight streaming through the spaces in the leaves.

I felt my heart sink, knowing that my mind was also hoping that we were on the run like the good ol' days instead of this current situation, before I sighed and jumped out of the tree.

When I landed on the ground, I took in the lush green grass, the neatly paved walkways, and the laughter of children heard in the distance.

So I had fallen asleep in a park. Interesting.

I walked to the nearest wooden bench, feeling groggy and inappropriate, ignoring the passer-bys as they stared at my choice of clothing and the fact that I wasn't wearing any shoes. Not to mention the tiny scrapes on my arms and legs from all the unforgiving twigs of the park trees.

I sat on the bench for a long time, unsure if minutes or hours have passed, back straight with my hands folded on my lap, staring at nothing.

I thought about a lot of things. Why people would always notice things unusual, like a girl sitting still on a park bench, instead of noticing all the small wonders of nature, like the park itself. Why a child would cry and complain about spilled ice cream when there were worse things. Why nobody would notice someone breaking and hurting inside, even when she's put all her guards down for the world to see.

Once I had nothing left to think about, I took a deep breath and stood up. I went to the nearest drinking fountain and drank for a long time, before washing my face with water too. I put my hair into a tight French braid, glanced around in case for an audience, before launching myself up into the air, flying further away from the general direction of what I felt was Connecticut.

The whole morning I was trying to occupy myself with everything _but_ what happened last night, but the mind wanders, and soon my thoughts shifted back to my current predicament.

I can't remember half the things that were going through my mind last night because I was just so distraught and disbelieving. I was in denial and angry at the flock, at _everything_, that I didn't even think about what I was doing (I should've _at least_ grabbed slippers for Buddha's sake) and even ended up hurting myself.

And when I thought that I was done crying, I shocked myself even more when I started to feel tears slipping down my cheeks as I wiped them away hastily.

I should've been tired of crying by now, but…I wasn't.

I wasn't ready to act tough and indifferent yet like I always have because as much as I hated sounding like such an emotional train wreck, I was still a teenager, and I've been trying to act brave for so long that it just resulted in _all of it_ bubbling back up and exploding in my face.

Right now I was sad, and hurt, and so _distraught_. I needed to think. Needed a place where I could be alone and just sort out my emotions, think about what I would do next.

And WWMD? What would Max do?

The 14-year old Max who was so brave and so strong that she wouldn't let anything, not even broken bones and nightmare-ish memories, stop her. 'Where did that Max go in the first place?' I wondered.

She would face all of these headstrong, I knew. She would, without a doubt, fly all the way back to Connecticut and unleash a can of Typical Max attitude complete with eye rolls, snorts, sarcastic remarks, glares and swear-words-turned-censored. She would put on a façade of determination and secretly patch up the wounds of her heart slowly by herself until there was no pain left at all.

She would've saved the world by now.

But she was gone.

I'm Max. _Sixteen-year old_ Max who's experienced firsthand that pretending to be _fine _for so long was just going to result in insanity and a mental breakdown. Maybe if I'd been more emotional it wouldn't have all bubbled up into this one big mess.

Going back to Connecticut was obviously out of the question. Not now anyways. Maybe I would go back some time, but as of right now, that place, that _room_ where they tore my heart to pieces would just haunt me, make the memory repeat in my head, and I'd probably go insane. I missed my family, missed my mom and Ella, but if I went back now I really didn't know what would happen. If I would cry, or shout, or act cavalier.

I just don't know.

And there was no other place to go.

We didn't belong anywhere. _I_ didn't belong anywhere. And no matter where I went, I would just end up _thinking_ about it. I needed some place to distract me. Somewhere that could occupy my thoughts, somewhere so much more important for me to think about.

While I continued to fly, a sudden idea came to me that I forgot to flap for a second and dipped a few feet. My eyes widened at the prospect and I felt my face break out into a small smile, something I thought I'd never do for a long time.

No, a light didn't suddenly shine upon me that I thought to go to Jeb or something (_yuck_). But I thought about something I_ longed_ for, something that was important and _missing_ in my life.

And suddenly, I knew exactly where I wanted to go.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

If you thought like, an amusement park or some artist-worthy landmark was enough to occupy my thoughts, I'm laughing at you right now.

In fact, the place I flew to was far from picturesque, and instead was somewhere most people would tend to cautiously and hurriedly run away from.

In the heart of a forest found somewhere in the middle of America (If I didn't tell you then, chances are I wouldn't tell you now.), I landed like an airplane, running to a stop and spraying dirt and pebbles everywhere. With my internal compass, I knew I was just a few yards from the spot, and I headed north with purposeful strides.

I knew exactly where I was going now, and the more I thought about it, the more I found myself pacing faster to that haven.

The trees in this forest weren't dense, nor where they too far apart; there was just enough space for people to weave through.

Enough space for 7 people to roam about for the perfect spot.

Enough space to bury their dead half-brother.

Oh, that's right. I was looking for Ari's grave.

'_Finally_._' _I thought, knowing that 6 feet under the land on front of me were the remains of what used to be my enemy, turned good guy, and apparently the 7-year old boy who shared half my genes.

Careful not to step on his grave, I walked around it and immediately plopped on the ground with a contented sigh, lying down parallel to his body and just…staying there.

Some of you are probably wiping away tears at the corner of your eyes at how sweet this moment was, others might be repulsed and wonder how 'morbid' I turned.

But I wasn't thinking either. I was just there, with my mind seemingly clear.

I wasn't thinking.

For the first time in a long time, my mind was wiped free of all the emotions and confusion, and now I could properly sort everything into perspective.

I didn't know how, and I didn't know why, but somehow this place made everything in the world slower. Like I could take all the time I wanted to just lie there and think about _life _and how all this happened.

And I did just that.

My first thoughts shifted around Ari.

God, I haven't said his name in so long.

I never thought I'd ever get close to him of all people. Ari, who I'd _honestly_ wanted to kill mercilessly and ruthlessly 2 years ago when we were sworn enemies.

I felt guilty for never thinking about him after his death. For not sparing at least one second to wonder where he was and how he is.

Maybe I thought to go here because he was the one person who I knew would never side against me. Not even now, if he were still alive.

I faintly wondered what would have happened if Jeb and my mom were never scientists. Would I, or Ella, or Ari exist? Would we all be one big happy family instead of the flock I met at the School? It was hard to imagine because I've only ever known a life on the run. A strange, unfair life.

I knew I was only close to him in the end, but there was just something about him that made us get along, made me _want_ him to be my brother. Even I took a couple of months to call my flock my family, but for Ari, it took about a week.

That's how special he became to me. How special he was, and still is, to me.

If he were still alive, I would've asked him for his help. I know there were others I could have gone to, but we had a special connection, and I trusted him enough to believe he would be on my side and understand.

I _believed_ in him, and he in me.

While I rolled over on the over-grown prickly grass floor of the forest, I couldn't help but compare Ari and Fang.

Not that they were equably comparable in the first place, but it just makes me wonder…

_How_ could Fang do this to me? Him of all people?

That question continues to resound over and over in my head, and up until now I'm still clueless.

It was incomprehensible. It was blasphemy. It just didn't. Make. _Sense._

I believed that the relationship Fang and I had was unbreakable and solid. Nothing could come between us ever again since we broke up/split up/however you want to phrase what happened 2 years ago. We fight (because _every_ couple fights), but never like this. Never, _ever_.

I thought he said we were going to figure things out together. That he would always have my back.

This was it. This was the moment in my life where he should've had me, and yet he let me fall. He let me shatter into a million irreparable pieces.

I shouldn't have been so gullible.

I didn't know what to think of Fang anymore. Funny how I once thought it would be him and me forever. That our relationship was stronger than anyone else's. That I actually _allowed_ myself to think of a future where Fang and I would live peacefully together and raise our own flock of children. (For all you girls with boyfriends out there, I'm sure you've thought about this too.) That he was my best friend, my boyfriend, my second-in-command, and most importantly my _soulmate_.

Funny how wrong I was.

Ari and Fang.

Two completely different people, yet they're both so important in my life.

I turned on my side, relieving my wings from smushing them to the bumpy, uncomfortable ground to face Ari's grave.

The sun was starting to set, shadowing the whole forest in black.

I didn't even realize how much time past, surprised that thinking all this through took me hours.

I wasn't afraid of the dark, but there was a definite difference between being afraid of the dark and being afraid and _alone_ in the middle of a forest by your dead brother's grave.

"Thank you for believing in me." I whispered sadly to the ground where Ari rests, feeling a tear roll down the side of my face to my ear.

Leaving him for the second time was hard, but I had to get going now.

I had to eat (a lot, actually, since I haven't eaten the whole day and I need a million calories if you've forgotten), get dressed and rest for the day to come.

And more importantly, there was one last place I needed to go.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Target sighted. Approach of douche bag in T minus 4…_

_3…_

_2…_

_1…_

"Hey." Aforementioned douche said as he approached the automatic sliding doors of the shop near the gasoline station. He smiled seductively, 'up-downing' my whole stance as I stood beside the doors, arms crossed over my chest as I casually leaned against it. His smile was actually nice, and his emerald green eyes were inexplicably captivating, but he was a huge jerk, and I _am_ a 16-year old girl. Those are the freaky hormones talking.

Luckily, he was too busy looking at me like a piece of meat, especially at my legs, to notice anything else unusual.

Like the fact that I was in nappy wear, or maybe the fact that I was _barefoot._ It was a wonder, really.

I forced myself to smile charmingly back at him.

Why yes, manly Maximum Ride did have womanly charm.

I knew that was one of things Fang loved about me, and some people in school have actually even told me. (Three guesses to who got to postpone our test in Biology?)

He winked at me right before he entered the doors and, resisting the urge to gag my intestines out (since I had nothing left inside of me), I quickly snatched the wallet jutting out of his back pocket with my sleight fingers and walked away casually.

If you didn't already know what I just did, that my friend, is called Grand Theft Walleto. (I crack myself up.)

After I left Ari's grave, I flew to the nearest city, following my internal compass yet again. Eventually I was able to spot him.

Him who I found out was named Richard. Him, who was probably about 19, who had a poor, submissive girlfriend that he abuses as I observed the way he held her wrists in the food court earlier. Him who I found out was kicked out of college recently. And him who I found out was going to buy cigarettes, right before I stole his wallet.

Was I a creepy stalker? Yes. Was I brilliant? _Hell yes._

That's Lesson #38 in Surviving-As-A-Fugitive 101. Go buy my book sometime.

As weird as it sounds, I've been following 'Richard' the whole day, after I found out how awful he was and knew that he was my victim. I was going to take him for all he's got and since I had a really screwed conscience, I didn't feel the slightest bit sorry for him.

I observed everything, taking note of the cost of his expenses, realizing that he was some richass spoiled brat, and knowing where his wallet was. It was very simple.

Finally, I followed him to this gasoline station, and with the right timing, I was able to steal his money, his credit cards, his driver's license and practically his whole life.

I was ruthless, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Okay, so maybe it wasn't such a good idea to teach you lesson #38. Whatever.

I strode to the nearest ATM, which was at the back of the gas station, and quickly withdrew the highest amount you could, stuffed the wallet and the cash into the small pockets of my floral shorts and took off.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I never thought I'd actually feel content and peaceful in a long time, but right now I could say I was.

Dirt-streaked, bloody and barefooted, I went to the nearest mall and purchased a first aid kit, a backpack, pajamas, undergarments, 2 pair of comfortable skinny jeans, 2 plain t-shirts, a hoodie, some essential groceries and canned food, slippers, and durable new combat boots, to last for 2 more days. (I didn't know how long I'd stay away.)

The salespeople were wary and annoying with their condescending looks, but I don't think I appeared to look too poor and homeless, and I _did _have the money for everything, so they couldn't really do anything about it.

I could tell you that eating alone in public is embarrassing and just plain depressing if you don't already know how it feels like, but I was hungry enough to eat a pregnant whale (not that I would, of course), so I did just that, ordering a bunch of food from 6 different food stalls and ignoring the stares of the people around me.

And if you _did _see, I was so _not_ the girl who stuck my tongue out to the people like a five-year old. I'm so much more mature than that.

Feeling sorry for my aching wings after the countless, intense flights, squishing them on the ground and against the walls, and folding them so tightly against my back, I changed plans from sleeping in the trees again and headed for the nearest hotel.

It didn't take long for me to check in (I was 'mature' enough to look 18, highest 20), getting a room with a single bed and the cheapest accommodations (I had money, but being on the run for so long made me conscious of my expenses; and I wasn't _stupid._), which is how I ended up here, sitting cross-legged on the thick-sheeted bed, bandaging the scrapes and cuts from the trees.

I forgot how fair-skinned I was as I applied antiseptic to a wound. Just before this, I took a shower, standing under the water for a long time and just watching the grime and filth mix with the water before going down the drain. Now, clad in pajamas, I concentrated on finding any other cuts I might've missed, hearing but not listening to the soft TV I left on.

Once I was done, I packed everything up and quickly got under the covers, wishing for this day to be over.

This room, in fact the _whole_ city had a constant chill in the air, making me suspect I was in some state near the middle.

I strategically placed the multiple pillows around me, and I purposely left on the TV, its volume at level 3, to some cartoon channel I always see Angel and Gazzy watch.

Even though I was dead tired, I didn't think I could sleep in complete silence, alone. This was the first time I've been away from my flock, and yesterday didn't count because I wasn't thinking straight. Now, everything was clear to me, and I realized just how scared I was.

But eventually I did fall asleep, curled up in a tight ball and bundled up in the cold, clean blankets, thinking about what tomorrow would bring when I get _there_.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"_Oh SHI-!"_ I didn't even have time to finish cursing when I crashed hard into the front doors, rolling inside the house with huge clouds of dust and pieces of wood swirling all around me.

Still crouched on the floor, arms aching and no doubt bruising as of this moment, I starting coughing uncontrollably, my eyes swimming with tears.

Instead of boring you with details on my flight here, I just got straight to the point.

The point where I burst through our old abandoned house, breaking down the door while I was at it.

Embarrassing, though I did have a way for making a grand entrance.

And if you didn't comprehend what I just said 2 sentences ago, I was back.

Back where I was 2 years ago. Back before Angel got kidnapped by the Erasers and this whole damn mess started.

Back in the E-shaped house.

**- - - - -O- - - - - **

God, this took me _for-evah_ to write. :| **Sorry** if I suck at the emotional crap because even in real life, I don't do emotions. And I'm really sorry this was so anti-climactic and boring; I hope you guys still **stick with me**! :D

Oh! **For further reference**: I never quit anything I start so _depend on it_ that I will finish this no matter what. Also, this story will not be over until I put the 'Complete' mark on it. **Comprende? **

I expect at least **13 reviews **this time, because if we can do it last time, and the time before that, I'm sure you guys can make it. :)

**Review, review, review!** Tell me what you think about this whole chapter, because I'm content with it though there might be something off. :| I dunno.

Peace out!

.: Tiffany :.


	28. Bring It On

Hey guys, how are you?

Me? Well, I'm currently deaf in my right ear (I'm not kidding), got the worst colds _evuhr_ and I've got a lot of homework to do. :)

Thanks to **MaeWithWings97**, **fireflies371**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **DancingintheRayne**, **Iced-Tea-XD** and **Birdwatched** for reviewing that last chapter, even if it might've bored you half to death.

And thank you also to **dancingonmytoes13** for that really long, really amazing review about this story. You, my friend, are awesome.

Next chapter will be better. Pinky promise.

Chapter 28: enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - - **

I've already decided.

One way or another, I was going to go back to Connecticut eventually. I didn't like the idea – I'd rather have all my hair pulled out and braided into souvenir keychains – but it was important that I go home. I was upset, but no matter what, I still loved my family and it was about time I went back.

But before that, before I had to face the harsh reality that awaited me back there, I wanted to go back to the past.

This morning when I woke up – after I puked out all my lovely dinner – the decision was already made. There was like a magnet pulling me back there, without my consent, but even when I tried so hard to forgive the flock, I just couldn't think it.

I still didn't forgive them. I still didn't trust them.

And then I thought maybe if I remembered all the good times, the times when we were one big happy family, maybe it would lessen my distrust and hate in them. Remembering our sweet life from the past was always one of my hobbies, and since I was already gone, why not check out if it still exists.

When I finally quit hacking from the herd of dust bunnies that shook my lungs, and was able to wipe all the tears away, I saw...

Everything dusted in grey.

No matter how bright the walls were, or how clean this place once was, the whole place looked like it came from one of those black-and-white movies.

Monotone, dull and lifeless. And eerily quiet.

Standing in the main hall, I noticed that everything was exactly how it was left. The couch with the low coffee table tilted exactly how I left it, the foggy picture frames on the walls still intact, and even the coat hanger and shoes we'd left near the entrance – all where they were just before we exited this house 2 years ago.

"Oh _God_," I whispered miserably to myself, connecting the pieces in less than a second.

That could only mean one thing: the Erasers never destroyed our home. They never even came here.

Closing my eyes momentarily, trying not to breathe too deeply to inhale the dust, I imagined what could have been. If we hadn't picked strawberries that day, maybe we could've still lived here, safe and happy. If the Erasers hadn't gone in our house, what if they didn't know we actually lived here? What if they knew we lived near the area, but might've never even found this house anyway? What if we stayed? What if we were safe all along? What if this all never happened?

So many 'what if's'…

Swallowing hard, I strode forward with shaking hands, preparing myself for the flood of memories.

"_ARGH!" Iggy yelped as he slid on the flour scattered on the floor, landing on his butt with a loud thud and widening his sightless eyes in shock._

"_What the heck is going on in here?" he asked, holding on the to kitchen island to steady himself. He knew Fang and I were in here, and he was pissed we had the nerve to mess with his kitchen. Ever since the flock figured out how horrible I was at cooking and baking, the kitchen was dubbed Iggy's, and he didn't appreciate us messing it up._

"_H-hi Iggy!" I said nervously, trying not to sound too guilty even though I knew I was already caught. Fang, standing right beside me, was busy dusting his black clothes from all the flour. He had an image to keep – trying to be a 'manly man' even if he was only 11._

"_What," Iggy said coldly. He could be _very _scary when he wanted to, "Are you doing with _my_ kitchen?"_

"_N-nothing, I-"_

"_Wait," Iggy sniffed the air, "Is something…_burning_?" Then his eyes widened again, "You didn't."_

"_I'm sorry?" I smiled sweetly even though I knew he couldn't see it._

_Iggy immediately rushed to his oven and opened the door – _

_Just as the cake we were supposed to make him exploded all over the front of his body and face, scorching him._

"_Ah ah AAHHH!" he screamed, heading straight for the sink and grabbing the spray, proceeding to soak his whole body. Once he was done, he turned slowly with a murderous look on his face._

"_Happy Birthday, Iggy!" I told him cheerfully, smiling my winning smile while Fang chuckled silently beside me._

It was this sink. This floor. This kitchen.

The memory was still clear in my head, like watching a movie on high-definition, colors and senses still vivid.

It was actually scary, seeing the difference of this used-to-be bright yellow kitchen, now only in shades of grey. Like those kinds of nightmares you get that you just can't escape, because no matter where I went, all I saw was grey, and all I saw were broken and crumbled pieces of our past life.

I moved on to the next room, knowing without having to examine the grey furniture what this room was.

_I bit into Gazzy's finger, making him drop his hand from my mouth and check for any wounds._

"_What was that for?"_

"_Why did you drag me under the dining table?" I whisper-yelled. At first I thought there were Erasers, but by the way Gazzy was grinning mischievously, I knew it was one of his schemes again._

_I looked behind him and noticed that everyone, except Nudge, was under the table as well. It was a wonder how we all fit, what with our huge, protruding wings and all._

_Fang was leaning casually against the leg of a chair, looking bored out of his mind. Iggy was grinning like Gazzy, making me wonder even more what they were planning. And Angel was trying hard not to laugh too loud, covering her mouth with small, pale fingers._

"_Nudge broke my remote-control car when she stepped on it with her big feet, so I'm getting back at her." Gazzy whispered._

_Nudge's feet were hardly considered big, and that remote-control car of his was getting on everyone's nerves anyway, but I decided not to point that out and instead focused on the bigger problem. _

"_Wait. You're not…"_

"_Yes Max, we're planning on scaring her." Iggy finished for me, slapping high-fives with Gazzy for what could've been the millionth time. They high-fived a lot._

"_That's not a very nice thing to do, guys." I glared at them, starting to get out from under the table. It was time to act like a mother, for they were acting uncomprehendingly childish for kids who'd had to grow so young._

"_Wait, no! Max-"_

_But it was already too late and I came out from under the table-_

_Only to be smacked in the back of my head a second later with a hair brush._

_Apparently, Nudge thought we'd been kidnapped and a bunch of Erasers were swarming the house. _

_I was just lucky it wasn't, say, a baseball bat._

I ran my fingers down the length of the dining table, collecting dust at the tips and coloring then dark grey.

Grey. Grey. _Grey._

This was the table where countless food fights ensued, where we sent each other certain looks during dinners about what just happened that afternoon, and where we ate together as a family, because Jeb made it a rule to eat together without anybody missing no matter what the excuse.

And then finally, I reached the living room.

"_And now we're back on The Price Is Right!" the TV blared while Fang, Iggy and I stared blankly at the screen, not really paying attention._

_Iggy was perched on the back of the sofa, as in _literally_ splayed on the back rest with one side of his body hanging off and the other resting on the cushioning. I was slumped right beside Iggy's left leg, leaning on the arm of the sofa with boredom, and Fang was seated on the other arm of the couch, clad in all black, back straight and unmoving._

_When one second I was about ready to flip channels, a deceptively sweet and innocent voice resounded throughout the house._

"_Maaaax!" Nudge called, sounding so cute in all her dark mocha 9-year old glory._

_And that's when Fang's eyes widened by a centimeter. When Iggy fell off the side of the couch. And where I sat up suddenly with a jolt, my eyes wide._

_We all looked at each other with panicked looks._

"_She's going to ask for something." I mouthed, and we all got up quickly._

_This was dangerous. No, this was _suicide.

_Back when we were 12 (and I had recently turned 13), we had a much harder time saying no to the Bambi eyes. If at 14 we'd found it difficult to say no, what more when we were 12 and were unprepared, untrained and unguarded?_

_We quickly scrambled around the living room for a few seconds, bumping into each other and spinning in circles until finally, I decided to hide behind the green and blue curtains by the window._

_But just as I was squeezing myself into a comfortable and inconspicuous position, _stupid _Fang and Iggy just _had_ to choose the same place I chose, inserting themselves on either side of me, squishing me like a sandwich._

_And let me tell you, it was _uncomfortable_. And very awkward._

_I was 13, going through the frustrations of puberty and having to deal with the awkwardness and uncertainty on my own. Back then, I only saw Iggy and Fang as my brothers – nothing else – but they were still _guys_. And keep in mind, they aren't really my biological brothers._

"_Mother of pearl," I cussed, "Couldn't you have both chosen a different place?" I whisper-shouted, knowing that Nudge was probably running down the halls to get the stairs. _

_Any minute now…_

_I turned from the window to face Fang's side, rather than having to kiss the dirty screens, and was surprised to see him grinning in that annoying way of his, his eyes telling me that he knew I was uncomfortable. I raised an eyebrow in question, daring him to start something, when he winked at me, making me raise both my eyebrows._

_He friggen' _winked_ at me._

_Boy, was I probably sweating bullets by now._

_I flipped sides in this Max sandwich, hoping that Iggy would keep quiet and just wait until Nudge left. _

_But when I faced his side, he too was grinning like a maniac, ridiculously seductive with his sightless ice blue eyes. My eyebrows shot waaay past my forehead now, probably suspended in the air above my head._

_They were being jerks._

"_Hey baby, how you doin'?" he said, his voice exaggeratedly flirty._

_But at that moment, I didn't focus on his words, or the disgusting smile still plastered on his face, or even how close our faces were. (Remember, Fang, Iggy and I were all the same height back then. Awkward to the max fo'sho.)_

_I was much more bothered by something else…Something putrid…and toxic…_

"_Oh my God. Iggy, your breath fricken' stinks!" I shrieked as loudly as I could without trying to draw too much attention to our spot. _

_It was so bad that my eyes started to water, and I felt my afternoon snacks almost make its way back up my throat. When was the last time he brushed?_

"_Are you just too lazy to brush or did you allow Gazzy to let one rip in your mouth for the heck of it?" I said, pulling my head back as far from him as I could. I was about to turn around and face Fang again instead, but looking at Iggy's face for one last time, I noticed the way his throat bobbed, the faint hallow sound it made before I realized…_

_He was going to burp._

_I ducked in time just as he let it out, a deep rumble in his chest as he did so, and when I looked back up, I saw…_

_That Iggy had instead burped in the face of an unsuspecting Fang, his face now contorting into a pained expression._

_Even then Fang wasn't the type to show emotions or feelings, so I knew that that burp must've been pretty floral fresh. (Note to sarcasm.)_

_I tried, I really did. But after 3 seconds of holding my breath I burst out laughing, backing out of the curtain to roll on the floor._

_And that was the day Nudge got to buy a new pair of jeans._

_The day I died of laughter._

_The day Iggy died or embarrassment._

_And the day Fang was subjected to a halitosis-induced coma._

I glanced across the room to gaze at the curtains, a small smile playing on my lips at the memory. I walked around a little more in the living room, picking up the picture frames on the mantel and scrubbing away the dust to reveal pictures of our kids' selves, laughing, smiling, flying, and just _living_.

We were living in those moments, easy and carefree, and I wished in vain to return to the past and fix all the mistakes I've done. Fix them all so that we could still be laughing, smiling, flying, and living.

With a deep sigh so filled with regret and depression, I turned away from the room and went upstairs.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Skipping Jeb's old room, I visited everyone else's, imagining the different memories that happened inside of them, and then disappointing myself further when I'd get sucked back to reality and end up staring into the grey.

Of chasing Angel and Nudge around their room, a spontaneous game of tag. Of scolding Iggy and Gazzy in theirs and meticulously scouting out their rooms for anything that might kill us. And of talking with Fang in his room until dawn, lying on my stomach on his bed while he sat back with his arms crossed behind his head, as we talked about our fears, our greatest dreams, and how we were going to raise 'our' family without Jeb.

I finally reached my room, ignoring the tears in my eyes and the itch in my nose from all the dust I've endured, turning the knob and entering.

And even here, things were as I left them.

I remember. I remember leaving a book – some stupid book Nudge forced me to read, I think – on the side table of my bed, where a white-dusted box-shaped object lay, remembered reading it the night before and shutting it with disgust a few seconds later. I remember I didn't have the chance to fix my bed because of the nightmare, the nightmare of being chased by dogs and Erasers and jumping of the edge, making me throw off the covers and leave them as they were now. And I remember slipping hastily into clothes my hands touched, leaving the drawer slightly open as I hurriedly left the room to try to forget about the dream.

It was all untouched. _Untouched._

There was nothing really important I'd left. With a life like mine, material things like clothes and books shouldn't matter. Not bothering with my closets, I went to my bed pushed up against the middle wall of the room and yanked off all the sheets and pillows, creating a mini fireworks display of whites and greys. Sitting down on the bare mattress, I opened my side table drawer, remembering too that all the most important items (though still not important enough for me to leave without) I had were stashed in here.

A ballpen, a simple blue notebook, my trusty old Zippo, my butterfly knife, my switch blade and my Swiss army knife.

I stuffed everything into my backpack (but not without playing with my butterfly knife for a few minutes; I still had _skillz_.), before reaching my hand in the drawer again to check for anything else.

I was about to draw my hand back thinking there was nothing more, but my fingers suddenly grazed solid tiny beads, and when I pulled it out, I gasped.

I couldn't believe I'd forgotten.

I brought the bracelet closer to my face, examining the durable plastic thread and the 6 beads – colored blue, black, red, yellow, green, and white.

I had brought home DIY activities for the kids once.

When we still lived here, we had to keep coming up with activities that would occupy our time. Just eating, watching TV, flying and playing was getting kinda boring, so I decided to do something about it.

I ended up buying books for Iggy, Fang and myself, and for the younger kids, I gave them art boxes, stamps and paper, coloring materials, play dough, and accessory making kits (For the girls, of course).

There was one day when Angel just went up to me, grabbed my wrist, and put this bracelet on, telling me in her adorable 4-year old voice that the beads were like our family, with each color representing me, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy and herself respectively.

It was very childish, and it wasn't exactly jewel shop-worthy, but I loved it anyways and that was the only accessory I ever wore willingly.

I slipped it carefully into my wrist, the bracelet still fitting perfectly, and almost hazily, I lied down on the dusty, old mattress.

I spent the rest of the day just lying there, reminiscing the old days and ending up just smiling or laughing on my own. I also ended up getting the journal from my backpack and reading the entries, frowning at my bad grammar and the messy scrawl I called hand-writing that I still used up until today. The only time I ever really sat up was to eat a few snacks, sloppily eating the ravioli and wiping my fingers on my jeans afterwards.

And then when there was nothing left to do, I went to sleep.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I was sneezing, coughing and scratching uncontrollably hours later, regretting pretending I could take this kind of condition.

I looked out the window, estimating it to be about 8pm by now. Last time I checked, it looked to be about 4. (You didn't think I would actually sleep here the whole night, did you?)

I sat up straighter on the bed and scratched my head, not bothering to worry about all the microscopic bugs that could be living in my scalp right now. (_Yuck._)

I walked out of the house, backpack slung over my shoulder, looking disheveled and groggy though I really couldn't care less.

Without my consent, clips of random memories that happened here flashed in my mind.

And sure, I was happy. I was happy to have these things to remember.

But I had to live in the present. Mourning time was over, and I had to face the reality waiting for me back in Connecticut.

I had to let go of what I had and see what was right in front of me.

And what was right in front of me was one of my biggest problems: facing _the_ flock.

But first, the flight home. Which is definitely a big problem as well.

_Oh joy._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I _crashed_ through my balcony doors none to gracefully, my shoulder now pulsing with pain on impact.

'_Shit…_' I thought, rubbing the spot where there would most likely be a bruise in a few minutes. Getting up from the floor, I closed the balcony doors back slowly, dropped my backpack, and turned around to face my room.

It felt weird to be back. Here. In my room. In this house. Where my flock was fast asleep a few rooms away.

Correction: the flock. Not _my_ flock anymore.

I shuddered just thinking about them.

My whole room felt so…alien to me. I observed the way some things were messed up; like the fact that my bathroom door was slightly open and that the beanbags on the carpet on front of my bed were scattered.

Despite noticing, I shrugged it off and strode half-conscious to my bed, looking oh so comfy and ridiculously soft in the dark. It was hard to reach my bed without doing a face-plant, what with my jello legs and exhausted body.

When I was finally beside it and once my head made contact with the pillows, I groaned in delight at how good it felt to rest and I fell into complete unconsciousness. Just like that.

Flying for 8 hours non-stop could do that to you.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It surprised me that I woke up even before the alarm rang. It surprised me even more that I even woke up at all.

I was still sleepy and no doubt still fricken' tired from my flight but sat up in bed anyway and looked at the clock on my side table. 5:33am.

I was stunned that I only slept for an hour and a half despite my body shouting at me to go back to sleep. No reason came to my mind as I got up anyway and made my way to the bathroom to take a shower. I was extremely dirty and in need of a nice hot bath to pass the time.

I had slept in my newly-bought jeans, graphic tee and boots which had all sorts of nasties on it from the E-house to my flight. I quickly stripped them off and filled up the tub with hot water. Once in the tub, under the scalding hot water that calmed my nerves, I was thinking if I should go back to bed and get all the rest I so desperately needed or face _the_ flock now, go to school and get all the crap over with.

I stayed in the tub, which was equivalent to heaven for my case, for 15 minutes before getting out. While I was toweling off, I finally decided to go with my latter plan.

There was no use in skipping school, having to do extra, _extra_ homework and miss even more lessons when I was perfectly capable of running on 90 minutes of sleep. I've done the worse before.

Also, I didn't want to _care_ anymore about the flock. I still 'cared' about them but I wanted the 'initial explosion of shock' to blow over already. Ya know what I mean? The faster the better.

I changed into my uniform (_grudgingly_ might I add), brushed my teeth, ran a comb through my wet hair and looked at myself on the mirror, not liking what I was seeing.

To sum it all up I looked like the living dead.

My skirt was hanging sloppily on my hips, tilted just slightly. My white blouse was all wrinkled up, matching my hastily knotted necktie, and one of my socks was higher than the other on my ankles.

When my eyes reached my face I really felt sorry for myself. My wavy layered brown-at-the-moment hair was obviously combed through but not quite neatly and my face…my face looked like a zombie.

I was pale, obvious compared to my normally tan complexion. My eyes had dark rings underneath, like badly put on make-up, and my mouth was set into a hard line, like I wanted to bite someone's head off.

I hated how I looked.

I first thought of shrugging it off because _'Who really cares about how I look? I didn't give a damn.' _then thought better of it.

'_No,_' I thought determinedly to myself. I will _not_ let this affect me. I will not let my broken heart get in the way.

With this in mind, I straightened up, pulled up my other sock, fixed my skirt on my hips, smoothened out my blouse, re-knotted my necktie, brushed my hair again and ran a hand through my face.

I was going to face this headstrong.

I was going to face this _now_, because I'm Maximum Ride.

I ignored the dark circled under my eyes and smirked to myself in the mirror, the right side of my mouth slightly turned up in a twisted kind of way.

_Bring it on, bitches._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

If you don't know what a **butterfly knife** is, JFGI.

So I read the first 23 chapters of **Angel: AMRN** last week. It looks promising and it's really good so far. :) The last chapter I read – chapter 23 (_duh_) – blew my mind. As in- OMG, I was stunned. O_o **Hint** (if you want it): An old, familiar _someone _joins Fang's flock.

Stupid, _stupid_ Fang.

I also found out that **the book after Angel: AMRN** will be the last book in the series. It kinda sad but good at the same time – I really love Maximum Ride and all but I think it's time he finishes the series. Besides, JP's getting kinda old. :|

**Anyways, **so this time I hope to get at least **11 reviews**. C'mon guys! I know I have a lot more readers than that; you guys are just being lazy. :|

Ask, complain, compliment, suggest, convince or talk to me about anything; I'm all ears. :D

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	29. Facing the Problem

Hi.

Thank you **DancingintheRayne**, **MaeWithWings97**, **fireflies371**, **Heyhey**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **5253Racer**, **booklover98**, **SharpestSatire** and **GreenNIghtRose** for reviewing!

Thank you also **fireflies371** for being my 100th reviewer, and **SharpestSatire** for being my 150th and for reviewing all the chapters you missed and filling my heart with joy. :)

I hope this chapter matches up to you expectations. Enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I heard the first signs of chatter just as I was about to take my second to the last bite off my bagel. I chewed slowly and took a sip of my orange juice while listening intently on their conversation. I could hear them even from way down here as they talked in the hallway upstairs.

The first voice I heard sent a wave of pain in my chest. _Fang's voice._ "…straight home from school…" he said, their voices growing closer to the stairs.

"…even gonna come back?... Been looking for 2 days and she could be _anywhere_..." _Nudge._ Another stab… I refused to be bothered by it and winced instead of hissing like I would have.

"_Can't_ give up… we have to _find_ her." _Iggy._ And the knife of pain was now slicing down, slow and slick. I was breathing heavily.

'_Calm down Max.'_ I forced myself and cleared my mind. I could do this.

I finished my breakfast and set my plate down in the sink before going back to the tall stool behind the kitchen's island, gulping my juice down while waiting.

And then they appeared.

I looked up from the marble counter to see 6 faces staring at me, all their expressions ranging from shock, surprise, happiness, confusion and guilt, but dominantly shock.

I felt a swirl of emotions go through me as well. I was gone for 2 days and it seemed so surreal to be back here, facing them. Too see them in a different light, and having to accept it.

We all seemed to have coordinated looks today because apparently, I wasn't the only one that looked like I was dragged to hell then back.

They were all sleepy, exhausted, groggy, and most definitely in pain. We all had those _very_ attractive black circles under our eyes, and we all looked like we'd just forced ourselves out of bed.

We were all one big happy mess of a family.

They stared at me and I did the same, calmly poised on the stool with a blank expression on my face. It was easy to be stoic because even if their presence flooded me with emotions, my mind kept going back to when they'd conspired against me, also filling me with hatred and anger.

Finally, after a few long seconds of just _staring_ at each other, I got up off the stool to head for the garage when Ella, Angel and Nudge ran to me and tackled me into a massive hug.

They were all shrieking with words like, "Oh my gosh!", "MAX! I can't believe it's you!", "You came back!" and statements along those lines.

And all I did was stayed rigid in their arms, my eyes widening only the slightest bit.

After a few more seconds of jumping and yelling in my ears, they abruptly stopped.

It felt like the whole world stood still.

Their arms around me were gone in a flash and they now stood a couple of steps away from me, much closer to the boys.

Their eyes were wide with fear as they looked at me, and they all looked like they wanted to crawl under a rock. They wanted to take back their hugs, take back their words and wallow in regret and depression. It was all in their eyes.

And all I did was continue to stare at them, hard.

Nudge was the first to speak and I was thankful to her for breaking the silence. It was suffocating.

"I-I'm sorry, Max. We were just all so worried about you when you left and we thought you'd come back that night and you didn't so we tried looking for you—"

"_Looking for me?_" I retorted, my voice cold and harsh. How could they _possibly _be looking for me when they were the one's who made me _run away?_ And even if they did find me, it was not like I was going back with them willingly.

She stopped short mid-explanation and Gazzy picked it up for her.

"- and you didn't come back even the next day when we thought you were going to, but I guess now you're here now and we're so _relived_—"

"Does it _look_ like I want to be back?" I asked, the edge in my voice never leaving. It was a rhetorical question that didn't even have to be said, but it seems like they didn't know when to shut up.

Unconsciously, they were all kinda huddled up together while I stared them down, feeling superior to them even though I _wasn't_ leader anymore.

"M-max…" Angel whispered sadly, blue eyes brimming with tears.

And it was then that I'd heard enough. Standing there, hearing them, it took everything I had not to rush to them and gather them in my arms and never let them go. But at the same time their voices, sounding so familiar and innocent made me nauseated. If I talked to them any longer I'd probably break down crying. This composure I was holding up was slowly breaking; I didn't know how much longer I could take this.

I was about to turn around to get to the garage when I was interrupted yet again by another voice, my half-sister's.

"Are you okay now, Max?" she asked curiously. When I turned around to face her again, I suddenly felt bad. Here I was, acting like bitch to her when she didn't do anything. She wasn't a part of this. She didn't kick me out of the flock and break my heart into a million pieces. And even now as I acted like an asshole, she was asking how _I_ was feeling. She still cared for me. Her face was filled with so much sadness and fear that I wanted to take all the pain away from her, even if I was in pain too.

"Ella…" I said, smiling sadly at her before I strode towards her quickly and wrapped her in a warm, deserving hug. She wasn't tough like the flock, wasn't used to bottling up emotions and holding in feelings, so once my arms were around her she immediately started bawling like a waterfall.

I couldn't imagine all the feelings boiling within her, the pain and confusion… She was only human. She didn't understand some things and wasn't used to this kind of drama. She knew about the conspiracy, was stuck between 2 sides and worried out of her mind about her sister. This was too much stuff to think about for a normal 14-year old girl.

I patted her head as comfortingly as I could, shushing her and reassuring her that everything was fine now when in reality, nothing was. As long as I got the tears to stop, I'll spew out all the lies I could think of.

When she finally stopped soaking my blouse with her tears, she took a step back and wiped her eyes with her head down, probably embarrassed.

"Ella, there's nothing to worry about anymore, okay? Everything's fine." I tried smiling at her.

She sniffed and calmed her breathing before looking up at me with red eyes. "I know Max, it's just…so much…and I thought…I thought you wouldn't come back…" she said with shaky breaths. She wouldn't look at me.

I scoffed at her words. "Wouldn't come back? Ella, I would never abandon you_ and _mom. Never, _ever_ so don't even think stuff like that." I used a joking tone to my voice but made sure the rest of the flock heard the meaning. I was hoping the guilt was eating them alive.

"Secondly," I continued, "I had no other clothes to wear so, ya…" I threw my hands up and rolled my eyes exaggeratedly, "It was either I go back here or I go streaking around America in my birthday suit..." I chuckled and so did Ella. I was actually able to buy clothes, and being on the run for so long made me used to wearing the same set of clothes for _weeks_, but it made Ella laugh anyways and a little humor never hurt anybody.

"Lastly," I looked at the flock, my eyes going back to their cold state, "Mom and Jeb bought this house for _us_, so of course I'd come back. I have _every_ right to be back here." I said venomously, daring them to contradict otherwise. None of them had the courage to speak up; they all tried to avoid my eyes in fear of being turned into a pile of ashes.

While I continued to stare at them, daring them to look back, Ella asked a question, one I was quite uncomfortable answering.

"Max, where did you go? You were gone for 2 days… You didn't sleep in the trees, did you?" She asked, concern lacing her features.

I was about to answer, telling them I stayed at a hotel (which isn't a complete lie) when Nudge gasped audibly, her eyes practically bulging out of their sockets. We all turned to look at her, who was following Fang's line of sight…

…who was staring at the multicolored bracelet on my wrist that fitted perfectly.

Ella stared in confusion at their reactions while Angel, Nudge and Gazzy gaped. Iggy was in utter confusion and Fang was just staring intently at it, no emotions on his face.

"Oh my God…I can't believe…the bracelet…how did…and you…" Nudge breathed. For once, she was at a loss for words.

Iggy was completely confused with the whole situation. He probably knew that I had come back, that much was obvious, what with all the ranting and my unfriendly retorts, but when Nudge gasped he just looked pissed and still didn't understand a thing. Then, when Nudge uttered the word 'bracelet' it suddenly dawned on him as well and he stared at me in shock.

Iggy wasn't stupid. The flock knew I don't wear accessories. Ever. To me they were useless and meaningless and would eventually just be thrown away. All jewelry were except this bracelet right here and the necklace Fang had given me for my birthday.

Fang then looked up from my wrist, staring at me levelly for the first time in a long time. And for the first time in a long time, my heart sunk as I noticed I…_I couldn't read him anymore. _

I didn't see a message from his eyes or understand what he was trying to tell me at that moment. I didn't get him. I was gone for only 2 days and we were already…_like this?_ I tried so hard to read a message from that single look, _anything_ that could pass between us in that single look but all I saw was his dark, scrutinizing eyes, staring into my own. I felt like a complete stranger to him now. There was no more connection.

I jerked my head to the left, breaking the staring game. I wanted to breakdown all over again because of that single empty look in his eyes.

I practiced my next words in my head to keep from stuttering and voiced them when I was ready.

"Okay, we better get to school before we're late." I said over my shoulder, hoping to sound nonchalant as I strode to the garage, grabbing the van keys from the hook.

I know I seemed so cold and harsh to them, but that was the only thing I think was safe to feel around them. Any other emotion might make me start to sob like a baby or break something. I still care and love the flock but I already said I wasn't ready to forgive them. Not yet.

As much as I wanted to be fearless and strong about this, I still felt hurt. I still _am_ hurt and I just _can't_ forget it in the snap of a finger. It takes time to patch up something like this, and since this was all five of them, I had to mend my heart five times even.

I wanted them to hurt, as bad as it sounds. It's selfish, but I want them to feel what I'm feeling. All the sadness and pain and everything that makes you want to scream and cry. I want them to hurt so badly it feels like you can't breathe, like the world was coming to an end.

To feel like they were _dying_, as I am.

**- - - - O - - - - **

It was hard.

No, it was damn _difficult._

It was difficult not to get out of the car to kiss Angel goodbye before she entered her school. It was difficult not to wave at Gazzy and Nudge as they entered theirs as well. And it was nearly _impossible_ for me not to hold onto Fang's hand before we entered the school, as I instead parked the car quickly and strode away from them the moment I was out, pressing the lock on the car keys over my shoulders without looking back to see if they even got out.

I _wanted_ to cry. No, I wasn't going to, but I wanted. I _really_ did.

Bad turned to worse when I entered the classroom and realized that Iggy and Fang sat beside _and_ behind me.

I'm a lucky girl.

Throughout the day, they didn't talk to me, but I could just _feel_ their stares. It was like I could read their thoughts, and I knew they were both thinking the same things.

And it _hurt_. They seemed really apologetic and regretful. But like I said, I didn't know if those were what they really felt. I didn't trust them anymore.

How sad. Not to be able to trust the 5 people you love most in the world.

Sitting there in English class, gripping my pen tightly, I started to think that I was really starting to miss that Sydney girl who sat behind me. She was so quiet and smart, and she always had those multi-colored pens that she'd let me borrow…

Better her than my boyfriend and my best friend, drowning me in confusing emotions. It was really suffocating to be stuck in the middle.

Lunchtime was also another problem. This was usually the time of day I looked forward to (aside from dismissal). It was free time – to read, to write, to talk with you friends, to eat, to gossip, to do anything. But now even lunchtimes were going to be strained.

While everybody in the cafeteria was minding their own business, it seemed like the world revolved around me. What was I going to do about Mitzi? And Iggy? How was lunch going to be from now on?

It may have been a good thing, or a bad thing whichever way you look at it, but these lunch problems that crowded my head seemed to have solved themselves. While I was lining up in between Bris and Zach, I saw Mitzi from across the cafeteria taking a seat beside Izzy and Mason, acting as if she's been sitting with them her whole life. And not far from that table, I saw Iggy take a seat beside Fang at his table, looking slightly uncomfortable but managing.

So this is what it's come down to. Just a few weeks ago we were all sitting together – me, Zach, Mitzi, Iggy, Bris and Izzy – laughing about some blonde jokes and debating whether I was blonde or brunette. (No need to worry about my self-esteem; we were used to taking turns making fun of each other.)

Once we took our seats in our usual place, now with 3 empty seats, I felt so old and _exhausted_.

I was so sick of this life, this life that I didn't even choose, and yet this was the kind of life fate kept throwing at me. A life full of hardships, sacrifice, betrayal, lies, conflict, and secrets. It's that feeling you get when something so good in your life is over – when the police come to ruin a party, when you break up with a boyfriend, when your dog dies, when you don't get into college.

And that's how I felt now. I knew my double life of average grades, and great human friends, and normal teenage activities wouldn't last, and yet, I'm still surprised that I feel hollow now that I lost everything. I lost _everything_, and it was irreparable.

I was back to my old self. Not the headstrong, determined and fearless self, but my paranoid, panicky, losing-my-mind self.

I'll admit I'm very fragile. So much betrayal, pain and loss could do that to you. And since recently I was betrayed once again, by the 5 people who I thought had my back, I didn't trust anybody. Maybe not even myself anymore. Life would seem like a lie, if you ever came close to how I felt. In a world where only 5 other people could know how you feel, and relate to your problems, and listen and understand what you mean, they'll mean everything to you, and if they hurt and betray you, you'd probably go insane.

I'd probably go insane if I didn't have that single strand of hope which was my mom and Ella. And I _promise you_, if they betrayed me right now, I'd kill myself.

Sitting at the table, staring at my lunch but not laying a single finger on it, I realized I was _tens_e. Coiled like a whip and ready to snap at anything that might set me off. Or maybe just anything at all. So paranoid about betrayal now, it was like I was expecting another one.

"Cam, are you feeling okay?" Bris asked worriedly. I faintly noticed that Bris actually called me Cam instead of Ron, but that didn't matter. At the moment, I could feel the weight of everyone's stares on me. Like the whole world was watching, waiting. More importantly, I could feel Iggy's sightless gaze, and Fang's penetrating one, boring into my back, I'm surprised there wasn't a hole burning through.

I couldn't answer Bris. The more I thought about the situation, the more scared and anxious I got. The reality of it all crashed down on me – this wasn't a world where we could bake cakes filled with rainbows and smiles and everyone would eat and be happy – this world was _cruel_, and unforgiving, and I suddenly found it hard to _breathe_.

I got out of my seat and started for the back door, the one that lead outside the school buildings. I was going to escape this life and probably end up back home, curled up in bed under the covers trying to cry myself to sleep, but then I found that I was suddenly blocked by the last person I _ever _thought who would confront me.

Not Fang, not Iggy, not Mitzi, and not even Izzy, but _Aiden Harris_ – the douche who I almost killed during that high school party.

I tried pushing past him, on the verge of hyperventilating, but he just put a finger to my forehead and pushed me back, and I was very annoyed with myself for _allowing_ him to do that.

I didn't understand at first why he was being so stupid. You don't _ever_ aggravate the person who beat the shit out of you. You avoid contact as much as possible, hiding behind walls when the person passes and avoiding eye contact in the slight chance you do have to pass them.

But then I realized he _knew_. He knew how weak I was at the moment. That 2 of my friends were gone from my side and I was left to be broken. He only knew the false façade side I put, but in their normal world, losing 2 of your friends was enough to have suicidal thoughts and think that the world was against them, or something just as exaggerated.

If only he knew how broken I really was. If he fought me now, he might even _win_.

And that was just how bad this was – me, Maximum Ride, who made grown men cry and beat the living daylights out of _military officials_ and _genetically-engineered mutants_, would lose a fight to a cocky, chauvinistic 15-year old idiot.

"Get out of my way." I growled, my fists clenching and unclenching at my sides. I was standing ramrod straight, with Aiden and his posse just standing 2 feet away from me. If he took my warning now, things wouldn't have to get ugly.

"Cam, Cam, _Cam_… look who's feeling like crap now." He smirked smugly at me.

Boy, was that the understatement of the century.

I was about to reply back something nasty that would have probably been censored in a R18 movie, when on either side of me, I saw Fang and Iggy walk past me to stand on front of me.

_Great._

Best. Day. _Ever._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Was it bad? I hope I didn't stuff it. :(

I hope you understand why Max is so glum. Try stepping into her shoes and see how she'd feel – that's what I had to do. And she's already very emotionally unstable from the beginning because of her past, so yeah.

Anyways, **please review!** I'm asking for at least **9 reviews**. They keep decreasing for some reason and I'm getting depressed. Is it getting boring? Anti-climactic? Predictable? **Tell me in a review!**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	30. Helpless

How's it going, guys? :)

**I am so sorry** for not putting up a chapter on Friday; I went camping out with my friends that day and I was only able to finish typing this out yesterday. Is that a good enough excuse? :D

So much thanks and appreciation from the bottom of my heart to **booklover98**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **Lulu**, **Max** (You sure are a saint. :D), **So I freaking love this**, **rando**, **MaeWithWings97**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **DancingintheRayne **(not sure if your name is Rayne, but I've got a friend who shares the same name ;) ), **WOAH**, **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **5253Racer**, **Birdwatched**, **Fireflies371**, **xxSurfingDreamsxx**, **Armadillolovesyou** (PLEASE ATTACK ME WIT A BOX OF FRUIT LOOPS! :O) and **abby** for reviewing the last chapter and for making me the happiest writer on earth. :)

Thank you also to **the people who subscribed to me and put me on their favorite list**; you guys make me tear up just a little.

Lastly, thank you **poetshmoet** for making that really original, really awesome review in the form of a poem about this fic. It could be like, the theme poem or something. (LOL.) I can't write poetry worth dirt, but I love reading them so…I love you. :) (in a non-creepy way, of course) Checkitout gaiz! ;)

Enjoy this extra long chapter for your reading pleasure! :D

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I felt my stomach drop at the sight of them. What the _hell_ were they doing? This was _my_ battle, and I fought all on my own now.

"Hey man, that's not cool." Iggy said calmly though I could tell inside he was boiling with anger.

"What's it to you?" Aiden shot back sharply, sounding way more defensive with an underlying tone of fear in his voice, "Are you her bodyguard? Are you her _boyfriend_?" He continued taunting, coming to stand much closer to Iggy just to piss him off.

Aiden got it all wrong; my boyfriend was standing right _next_ to him.

The whole cafeteria seemed to hush as we all watched the commotion. I had a bad feeling at the pit of my stomach that this wasn't going to end well. Things never end well with us mutant freaks.

I hated attention – one of the other things that made me more paranoid. While other girls my age would _love _to be in my position, I just wanted to punch someone (I'm not really picky on who) and fly off to sort through my emotions and clear my head.

It was just too bad I never get things my way.

"James, back o-" I was quickly cut off by a scary-calm Iggy.

"No, I'm her _friend_, buttplug. And as a _friend_ I'm telling you apologize, back your sorry ass off and never bother her again. Do I make myself clear?" Iggy glared in his direction, focusing on his cheek but still looking hecka scary.

I didn't think there was a need to apologize but I guess he was also thinking about the last time when he forced himself on me, and it fueled his anger.

And I was pissed as well because I knew I didn't need defending. I played offense and defense by myself.

I was about to sweep past all of them and just get the hell out of there, maybe even biting off one of their heads in the process when things happened so quickly.

Apparently Iggy wasn't clear enough, because Aiden stared at Iggy in rage before he growled at him and thrust his fist directly at Iggy's face.

Cue everyone gasping.

I bet that all my classmates and schoolmates had the shock of their life when they saw the blind kid catch Aiden's fist in his palm, arm stretched out.

No one moved or made a sound.

Iggy then smiled evilly at Aiden, looking so badass that Aiden _whimpered_. He twisted the arm in one fast motion so that he had Aiden in a headlock, then looked towards Aiden's friends who surrounded him in a semi-circle.

"I _said_, do I make myself _clear_?" He asked coldly. They all nodded with wide, terrified eyes.

Okay, I think he should stop scaring people now. His 'blind, happy-go-lucky and soft-spoken' reputation is already out the window; let's not turn him into the bully of the decade.

"James, that's enough." I said stonily, acknowledging him in school for the first time.

He let go of Aiden reluctantly and he fell to the ground. Before I could say my witty comeback that would render everyone speechless, Iggy decided to interrupt me _yet again_, leaning forward over Aiden's body threateningly.

"Talk to her again and you'll be sent to the hospital. I _assure_ you." he said steely, "You wouldn't want to mess with me." He pointed to himself, "And you sure as hell wouldn't want to mess with him." Then he jerked a thumb at Fang.

Fang barely did anything. He just stood there and looked handsome.

Well, handsome and terrifying.

I mean, if we all won awards, I'd win the 'Best Fighter Award'. Iggy would win the 'Most Witty Award' cause he just is and Fang would receive the 'Most Badass Award' hands down.

If you got one of Fang's signature glares you'd probably kill yourself first before Fang could get his hands on you just so you wouldn't suffer for too long.

So right now, with Fang's stare burning into Aiden's skull with no sympathy, Aiden nodded with wide eyes and crawled backwards on his palms to his gang.

I had a feeling he wasn't going to mess or even look at us for a _very_ long time.

I didn't understand why they were doing this for me - one minute they're 'dethroning' me and in the next, they're defending me like I need it – but deep inside, I was secretly thankful. I was all talk about being offense and defense because right now I wasn't so sure if I could've managed on my own.

I knew the situation was _bad_. No, that was an understatement.

I knew they were merely defending me, but students, especially _new students_ like us, never diss or threaten Aiden Harris. He was like, _way up there_ on the social ladder. It was just _not done._

And yet here we were. The quiet, tall new kid with an 'I don't care' attitude, who was often seen with her good-looking and equally quiet older brother, Nick, and her tall, also good-looking family friend, James (these are all according to Mitzi), delivering fresh, juicy drama to their mundane world like when I fainted in the hallway, and like right now, as Iggy threatened Aiden. I'm telling you, these people needed lives.

We were going to face rumors and gossip and stares from random schoolmate's eyes now. Our reputations undoubtedly changed all because of this, during an ordinary lunch at school, and all I could think was, "Shit. We're screwed."

But that was as far as my thoughts could go because there were worse things, and my life was usually just that crappy, and all I could think about was _getting the hell out of here._

I finally made my dramatic exit, stalking off and out of the back door of the cafeteria. Once I was outside, I took deep gulps of fresh air, relishing in the cool wind that whipped around my hair and face and the relaxing feeling of being able to be alone and just not think of anything.

It was just too good to last though, when I heard the back door open again, and I fought down the urge to rip my hair out and scream my throat hoarse.

If it were Iggy and Fang, I would've shot off into the sky without looking back. If it were Aiden, I would've incapacitated him and buried him right then and there. And if it were Zach or Bris –

"Hey." A voice said, and I instantly recognized it to be Zach's. Speak of the devil…

I didn't respond at first as I thought about my next actions. I was actually going to say I was going to act like a bitch to Zach and Bris to get them to go away, but hearing Zach's voice right now made me think otherwise.

They were my only friends left, I realized. And they've been so patience and nice to me. This morning Bris lent me all his notes so that I could catch up, and Zach offered to help me with our new Math lesson. They didn't deserve to be treated unfairly; I was just so moody today that everything wrong seems right.

"Hey." I said back, not moving from my position against the wall as I leaned on it with my eyes closed, my hands behind my butt in an attempt to warm them.

"You okay back there?" I could hear his voice getting closer, standing slightly to my left.

"Mhmm." I kept my replies short and simple. I wasn't planning on being rude, but I wasn't really in the mood to talk either.

And for a while we were both just quiet. Luckily it wasn't the awkward kind of silence. Not the kind of silence where I would feel comfortable and safe when I was with Fang either, but it was good in its own way.

After a while, he said suddenly, "So am I picking you up tomorrow or are we meeting at the park?"

That caught me off guard. Not that I had any guards left, really.

So with my highly-developed vocabulary and my immense knowledge all things pertaining to comebacks, I said the one thing my mind quickly came up with.

"_Huh?_" I said, opening one eye to look at him.

Zach exaggeratedly rolled his eyes and sighed audibly with faux frustration. "_Cam, how could you?_ Forgetting me like that, forgetting _our date_ like that as if it means _nothing!_" he joked, and I suddenly remembered what we talked about that time in dismissal before.

"I thought you were _kidding!_" I said back, smiling in an apologetic kind of way.

If you guys have forgotten as well, go back to the time when I had that really long conversation with Zach about my penmanship. He had asked me 2 weeks ago to hang out with him. I totally ditched him.

Aren't I the greatest friend _ever?_

"Well, to be perfectly honest, I forgot about it too. It was supposed to be last Friday, but you were just _so_ _eager_ to see your family as though you don't see them _everyday_ last week that I forgot to remind you."

Wow. Just last week I was actually ecstatic about coming home from school to hang out with my family. How _strange_…

"I'm sorry Zach, I really am."

"So am I, and I can see that you're troubled, so why don't you take your mind off things for a while tomorrow and hang out with me?" He came to stand on front of me, his eyes just a few centimeters higher than mine that I didn't have to look so far up.

I used to spend my time with Zach all the time. When I wasn't with the flock, or with my mom and Ella, (or on a date with Fang) we would just go to the park and attempt to skate, or we would watch a movie in the mall, and once we even went to the batting cages and just practiced our swing.

It was easy to be with Zach because he was just so funny, and chill, and he just made the most out of life. I envied him because he made living look so simple and easy. He respected my decisions, never pushing for details if I didn't give them, and yet he would go to me if he had girl problems or if he needed to tell anyone something important.

And when he chooses to tell _me_ these things and not Bris, or Mitzi, it made me feel like I was special. Maybe even his best friend.

"You sure I won't embarrass you in front of all your other skater friends or something?" I asked with a small smile on my face.

"_Psh!_ 'Course not!" My smile started to broaden, "I'm just going to deny any connections I have with you if they ask." He continued, chuckling, and I smacked him on his arm, laughing with him as well.

Maybe that's what I needed at the moment: Zach.

He helped me believe that things could get better. That things could be _easy._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

So maybe I wasn't completely fearless about seeing the flock. I knew that if I saw them again after school, a second wave of emotions – which might or might not be stronger than the first – would wash over me, and I still didn't know how to react to all of it.

I'm not going to keep going on about how much pain I was going through or how tight my heart would constrict whenever I thought about them. No. I'm going straight to dismissal.

Straight to the part where I totally ditched Fang and Iggy.

Usually, I would wait for them near the double doors, or the gates to the school if my mom isn't able to pick us up. But for _obvious_ reasons, I couldn't face them again just yet. I needed breaks where I could calm my nerves and prepare myself for the overwhelming onslaught of nausea and anger.

When we were walking down the halls on our way to the gym for PE, I was able to slip the car keys, with a note attached, into Fang's locker. (I had my ways…) And when the final bell rang, I bolted out of the gym, collected my backpack with all the things I needed onto my shoulder, and left with no goodbyes.

I do _not_ recommend flying with a backpack. I ended up having to carry it like those baby contraptions you strap onto the front of your torso so that I could fully flap my wings. Flying helped a lot, more than you guys would know, and when I got home I felt that I was ready.

After changing into shorts and a tee, I positioned myself on the couch in the entertainment room. Cheek on my palm, elbow on the arm rest, I ended up watching a show about some kids bursting into song in their high school (If this happened in real life, I would have probably stabbed sporks into my ears just to save myself.) and this other one about these spoiled brats with always-perfect hair that ran around New York trying to solve their oh so life-or-death problems of what to wear to the ball or who's gonna be my date tonight.*

…

I wanted to throw my slipper at the TV at how ridiculous and _stupid_ media was nowadays, but then I didn't, cause then I'd have to walk across the room just to pick it back up.

The flock took _so_ long going home that I ended up falling asleep on the couch. Wanna know how I woke up? _Stiff neck. _As in, the word possible case you could think of.

Dear God in heaven, help me.

I didn't think I'd stay rigid even in my sleep but I guess I was just that anxious about their arrival that I didn't move from my position one bit. I resisted the urge to cry as I straightened my neck and held the sore spot, not knowing what to do.

My plan of action was to go up to my room and let myself cry in there while continuously trying to chop my head off, but just as I was about to exit the entertainment room, I heard voices. Arguing, _familiar _voices. The flock's voices.

Of course they'd be home. I knew that much. I just didn't expect them to come at _this_ moment in _this _room and I was _not_ prepared. Still clutching my neck, I turned around in circles twice before deciding to revert back to my initial plan – poised on the couch filled with indifference and snark.

I didn't even get to take one step from beside the door when Angel stalked in, an irritated expression on her face. I pressed myself against the wall in hopes of disappearing or going right through it, but to no avail.

What would I say when they notice me? Would I give them attitude or would I explain myself?

The rest of the flock entered, all of them with irritation and conflict written all over their faces (except for Fang, but you already knew that). I was waiting for them to turn their heads towards me and stare at me with surprise or shock, but they continued to argue as if I wasn't there.

Why were they pretending I wasn't there? I didn't get it. I'm sure they would've all been hyper-aware of my presence in a room. We were in the middle of a _schism_. My blood ran cold whenever I would hear Angel's voice or see her sickly sweet smile, and I'm sure it was the same for the rest of them.

And yet, observing them interact without actually listening to their conversation, it's as if they _really_ couldn't see me. I slowly lifted my arms to cross them over my chest, breathing as quietly as I could and coming to lean against the wall.

And no one flinched, or stopped to think, or turned to face my direction.

What. The. _Hell._

I was too scared to move. Scared that they'd catch me, but mostly scared that they couldn't see me. Was I invisible? As in, _literally?_ Why was this happening to me?

I was frozen in place with fear, but after a while it crept out of my veins and I was able to breathe a little. I didn't understand what was happening but it was clear that they couldn't see me.

Then again, we're mutant bird-kids. We're weird _period_. Anything was possible with us and this wasn't the first time something weird has happened to me. (I mean, I have _gills_, and I can go up to _300 mph_ in the air and on land. Who does that?) I quickly got over it and tried seeing if I could sneak out of the room undetected. I haven't even turned to face the door yet when Nudge said my name with an edge to her voice.

I stood frozen yet again. They were talking about _me_. Why did everyone always end up gossiping about me? (I know it sounds vain, but it's true.)

I couldn't help it; I stayed put. Fang said I was always too curious for my health and he was damn right. What were they talking about and why were they arguing? Shouldn't they have all been on the same side against me?

"…and that's _your _problem, Angel. Deal with it." Nudge finished, sounding more furious than I'd ever heard her been in my life. Nudge was usually the happy-go-lucky peacemaker, so when she was mad she could really probably dance on your grave. I knew this was serious.

"Well _I'm_ leader of this flock, and I'm telling _you_ to deal with it." Angel retorted back, a condescending look on her face. I knew it was none of my business whatever they were fighting about, but I couldn't help but feel angry as well. Now that she was leader, I couldn't believe she was using the title to threaten Nudge. And the way Angel said it – her words and her tone – it sounded as though she believed she was better than the rest of them.

Steam was practically coming out of Nudge's ears. "Bitch did _not_ just say that." she said, sounding like a true African-American as she crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her hip to one side.

"Nudge, language." Fang reprimanded at the same time I stated those words in my head. He came to stand slightly in between them in case anything happens, and I knew that if anything did happen, I would react in an instant as well.

"You heard Angel! She's acting like a spoiled despot! At least Max was sensible about her power-!"

"Can we stop _arguing_…" Gazzy whined from across the room, slouching on the arm of the couch with a wary look on his face. I was totally with him there – I couldn't stand seeing the flock argue.

"Why don't you do it, Gazzy?" Angel suddenly piped up, smiling at him.

"_Why me?_" his eyebrows scrunched together, looking really annoyed by the situation.

"For your dearest, darling sister?"

Gazzy sighed in exasperation, like he was so sick of that excuse and so sick of telling her a million times, "Angel, it's _your_ responsibility. You're in charge of the flock's actions so you have to be the one to talk to Max." _'Talk to me about what?" _I wanted to shout; what was so darn important that it was making them fight like this?

"Why don't you just, read her mind or something? See if she's cooled down or if she's digging up your grave in the backyard as we speak." Nudge interjected none to kindly, smiling at her with poison. I knew the smile wasn't directed at me but I couldn't help but flinch. It was much scarier for a nice person to become angry as compared to a temperamental person becoming angry – you never really knew what to expect.

Angel then all but shrieked, pressing her hands against her face in frustration, looking way too stressed and too tired for her age, "I told you guys already, _I can't read her mind_. You don't understand! I hear everyone's voices in my head, but when I concentrate hard enough, I could tune it out a little and it's bearable. I haven't been listening specifically in on anyone's minds because I was so busy with school, and ballet, and French classes, but that day we played hide and seek and you told me to read her mind it's like, it's like there's _nothing there_! Like her mind is empty or she's put up these walls around her mind and it's pushing me out. I've only ever seen that on whitecoats like Jeb, but Max's is different. Not artificial like the whitecoats, but there's just…there's just something _there_…" Angel looked so conflicted, I could see that she was about to cry.

I would've blown my cover then, but surprisingly, it didn't come as a shock to me. Not really. There have been so many situations in the past where I would think about my expiration date subconsciously and yet she hasn't confronted me about it. That explains so much why they didn't see it my way; because Angel would usually be the one to see everyone's point of view, and she was usually the neutral ground who could explain and defend both parties. If she'd known what was happening to me, the pain that was making me weak and how stressed I was with everything, maybe then she wouldn't have gone against me. If only she'd just _understood_, none of this would've happened.

"Fang, why don't you talk to her?" Gazzy said under his breath, not really looking into anyone's eyes.

"If you guys haven't already noticed, they're having a little disagreement of their own. Max would probably rearrange his bones the most if he accidentally breathed the same air she did." Iggy said, and that almost made me smile. Iggy was just simply stating that it wasn't a really good idea to let me and Fang be in the same room alone yet. He said it sarcastically, but it was still an innocent statement nonetheless, and yet that's what made Angel explode like a fireworks display on the 4th of July.

"Well then why don't _you_ talk to her Iggy, since you and Max are _such buds!_" she burst, flailing her arms and stomping her foot. It's true that Iggy and I have gotten closer ever since we settled down, but that still didn't make us the bestest of friends forever or anything.

"_Angel-_" Gazzy started, but Angel wouldn't let him; she was on a roll.

"Look, I don't see why she has to come. I know she's a part of the flock, but Max's heart isn't into it right now. She'd probably just ruin it. She doesn't care about the world, or us. She _left us_, and had us look for her everyday after school for 2 days! And we'd just tire ourselves, flying around the whole east coast for nothing! _She doesn't care!_ And if she cared so much about her mission, she probably would've saved the world years ago!" She yanked at her blond curls, breathing raggedly as the tears started to slowly spill down her cheeks.

"You don't seriously believe that, Angel…" Nudge said slowly, eyes wide with shock.

"She left us, and I thought we'd _lost_ her…" Angel's voice broke and she wrapped her arms around herself.

Now you probably think I was seeing red by now after what she'd said about me, but surprisingly, I wasn't. (I guess nothing could shock me now; I mean, they brutally kicked me off my leader post which was comparable to seeing Lady Gaga dress like a normal human being.) Sure, I felt a little bit angry, but I mostly just felt sorry for Angel.

I constantly have to remind myself that Angel is only 7, and that she shouldn't have to do a job like mine. I knew she wanted it, but none of us should've allowed her to take it, and now she was breaking down. I knew she didn't mean the things she said; she was speaking in anger. She was irrational, and she was stressed, and she wasn't filtering the thoughts and words that came out of her mouth. She was just so frustrated that it all boiled over and she couldn't hold it in any longer.

I knew exactly how she felt because there were times when I would feel exactly the same way, ready to give up and wait for the world to destroy itself. And yet I bottled up all my emotions and plastered on a fake smile, pretending to go on like I always had a plan.

That was Angel's mistake: Showing others that she was hurting. Because when you're leader, you're group will look to you for guidance and reassurance, and you should never show them just how helpless a situation is or how hard things were going to be. You had to be calm and collected and make the group that looked up to you feel safe.

"Angel, we don't care what you think." Fang piped up, his voice sounding flat and harsh, "She's still a part of us. Our flock was always so close to falling apart in the past, multiple times in fact, when we'd disagree and fight about petty things and just don't get along. But she kept us together, and she made us a _family_. Made us feel like we're a part of something." He said, and I don't believe I've ever heard him say anything that long pertaining to emotional flock matters. He usually left that to me.

"Fang's right. It isn't fair to keep her out of these things so the least we could do is gather up the courage to tell her what we're up to, and we'll just see what she thinks about it. We don't have to force her to do anything she doesn't want to." Iggy added, for once sounding mature and reasonable.

I always saw Iggy as one of the younger kids, but getting closer to him and hearing him now, it made me realize how old he was. He was as old as me and Fang, not exactly as cautious and serious, but he was all grown up now.

"I-I can't read her mind, _remember?_ Much less _talk_ to her in her mind-" Angel began, but it was then that I decided to cut in.

"Or you could just say it to my face." I said, stepping forward with my arms crossed over my chest, my voiced tinged with bittersweet frankness.

I knew it wasn't a very well thought-out plan. If I was invisible to them for most of their conversation, how was it any different than if I decided to interrupt then? Would I be a voice carried by the wind or would my freaky genes decide to allow me to appear in front of them? Hopefully yes, I thought. My entrance, or rather, appearance, was totally _bamf_ if I do say so myself, and it was about time I intervened their argument. I still didn't really know what they were talking about but I hated seeing my family argue. That, and their shouts were starting to give me a headache, my temples already pulsing with pain.

Luckily, they heard and saw me. In fact, my appearance was so sudden in this tense and serious moment that everyone jumped about a foot in their air and a bunch of them shrieked, not all of them just coming from the girls.

Once they were able to get over the initial shock, and when their hearts finally stopped trying to explode from their ribcages, Angel hastily tried to wipe her tears away in an attempt to look 'leader-ly'.

"M-max…" She tried to say with authority, clearly failing when she stuttered.

"Suck it up, sweetie. You're _leader_ now; there's no time for crying." I said with exasperation, as though it was _so_ obvious that leaders _never_ cry. I know I sounded like an ass just then, but I couldn't help but revert back to Sarcastic Max at that moment. As I already said before, I play offense and defense by myself, and my weapon of choice was sarcasm and wit (followed by my fists). When I knew nothing else to say, I said something that would make grown men rip their hair out in frustration.

"But do keep in mind Angel that you're still the youngest in the flock. I don't want to hear you answering back to anybody, got it?" I decided to add, remembering what I was angry about with this argument. I didn't care about the things she said about me; I never took insults to heart anyways. I just didn't like the fact that she got mad at Iggy and Nudge, who were much older than her. I knew I raised a proper and sweet girl, despite my example, and even when under pressure she had no right to talk to them like that.

Angel's bottom lip trembled when she spoke, "You can't tell me what to do, Max."

"Oh, I may not be leader, but I'm still the eldest in this family, and I can make the decision whether you see the light of day again or not." I looked her straight in the eyes, narrowing my own to get the message through to her and to everyone else in this room: I still had authority here. They had to act like the people I raised them to be, and I wasn't allowing any attitude problems around here.

Looking at each and every one of them scattered around the entertainment room, a realization came to me: I wanted things for us to get better. (Well _duh_, why would I not?)

Just 2 years ago, Angel wouldn't have even dared answer back her brother no matter what he did to provoke her. Seeing her today, I realized how messed up we've become.

We're a broken family, and we had a lot of fixing up to do. Two years ago, I didn't have to tell them when to be polite or when to apologize for what they did wrong; they knew better. Now, I felt like it's my responsibility to make them remember. And even if I'm not leader of the flock anymore, I wanted all of us to get better from this.

I abruptly left the entertainment room, exaggeratedly swishing my hair in the process for effect, and went to my room, already thinking of ways to make things right again.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Despite my skull splitting in half for most of the afternoon, I decided to keep this to myself and continue to have my much needed hang-out with Zach. We decided to go the park after school the next day, borrowing one of Zach's multiple skateboards as he taught me the full cab and a few other simple tricks.

As the sun was starting to set, we decided to call it a day and head home. Zach and I lived somewhat close to each other, and at first we were going to walk together to get back, but as he was taking a drink at the fountain, I started ahead and just sent him a text message to let him know. I lived much deeper in the village, a very secluded area with the nearest house 23 lots away, so there was more travel time to cover.

If I ended up walking with Zach, I would reach my house at dinner time when I could just very well fly home. And there was no doubt that he would insist to walk me all the way, even if he had to backtrack and walk home alone with the streets crawling with robbers and rapists or something. I was better off on my own for both our sakes.

The streetlights turned on at one point, just when I was a couple of yards away from the park. It was dark, but for me and my enhanced senses, it was just as good as day. I could hear voices around me; people coming home from work and school, groups of teenagers laughing and talking, and even whispered conversations of 2 lovers sneaking out at night to meet up. I was concentrating too much on my headache, and not on the journey home, that I didn't even process what was happening until I was slammed against the pole of a streetlight, dropping the skateboard Zach told me I could take home. I pressed my lips tightly together to keep any groans, whimpers or cusses from escaping my lips as my wings throbbed with pain on impact.

There were 3 of them; all sporting the same built and the same height which made me think they were in college. They were sneering at me, cackling and high-fiving amongst themselves, though I was mostly eyeing the ice pick and the rusty switch blade that 2 of them were holding. Not cool, guys.

With my back pressed against the streetlight, I assessed the situation. If they were killers or criminals or sorts, this must've been their first time. Only rookies were stupid enough to commit a crime under a _streetlight_. Anybody could've been watching them, and yet they were wasting so much time congratulating themselves on a job well done on actually catching someone, instead of say, _killing_ me?

But most of all, they caught _me_, which was a mistake in itself; they should've already been writing their wills and saying goodbye to their loved ones.

"_Daayum!_ Looks like we got ourselves a _chick!_" the one holding the switch blade said, smiling seductively at me. He updown-ed me once and licked his lips, making me cringe to my core and regret ever going through puberty, "And a very _hot_ one at that."

I didn't say anything, though I was already imagining myself cutting his tongue out. If there was one thing I couldn't tolerate, it was chauvinistic jerks like these that think they could do anything they pleased. I held back my retort and continued to glare at them, my face clearly showing that I was imagining all of them in an ambulance.

"Stan man, shut da fuck up and hold 'er down." The third one said, who I assumed was the leader. I just barely held back the urge to groan at how typically 'gansta' they sounded, or at least, tried to sound.

I didn't understand at first why I wasn't spouting out bitchy remarks left and right. I was especially ruthless to douche bags like these. But then I came to the conclusion that it was pointless. I knew I was going to take them down anyways; why waste my precious saliva when I could be using it for other things like practicing how I was going to talk to the flock (I was going to have to, soon or later) or using it to, I dunno, break down food molecules? (Saliva does break down food molecules, right?)

Ice pick guy and switch blade dude (it was much faster than saying 'guy holding the ice pick' and 'dude holding the switch blade') raised their hands and looked about to hold me in place, when a loud, threatening, "Hey," caused us all to turn our heads.

And this time I _did_ groaned as my sharp eyes took in the messy brown hair, the knee-length checkered Bermuda shorts, the worn out Vans and the skateboard clutched in his right hand.

_Why the hell does everyone keep thinking I need saving?_

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

*I'm not going to make you guess what these shows are 'cause you guys never try anyways. :( **The first one's Glee, the second one's Gossip Girl.** And I'm not dissing it or anything; on the contrary, I watch both. I just don't think Max is the type of girl who would appreciate them.

**Since I know** you guys are actually capable of reviewing, and _not_ impaired in your phalanges, your metacarpals, or your carpals, can I get at least **14 reviews** this time? Pretty **please** with (insert whatever you guys want) on top tied with decorative ribbons?

**Review, review, REVIEW!**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	31. Zach Attack

So I'm going to try not to sound too depressed or cranky now. :)

Yeah, I've been going through depression. And it's not just crap depression about petty problems, it's something personal and it's something within me.

Don't mind me guys, I'm not mad at you. You guys, on the other hand, are awesomesauce. B)

Thank you so much to **Iced-Tea-XD**, **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **Armadillolovesyou**, **MaeWithWings97**, **fireflies371**, **DancingintheRayne**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **volleychik12** and **Kalianna Loralei** for reviewing! :D

Really, **I love you guys (in a none creepy way)** so don't feel like I'm blaming my problems on my writing, or vice versa. (Does that even make sense?) I just had my mid-terms and next week is project week where I have 3 projects, 2 essays and an oral presentation in another language to do. **Bear with me please.** :P

For now, **enjoy chapter 31!**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Zach walked forward, skateboard still in hand with a determined look on his face. When his eyes met mine, I saw his widen as he whispered, "_Cam?_" disbelievingly.

Okay, for a second there I thought he was going all 'Savior to the Rescue' on me because he knew I was in trouble, but the look in his eyes told me that he was surprised it was me and I remembered how much of a good person Zach is. He would've came to the rescue no matter who it was, completely brushing aside good reasoning on how dangerous it could be. Very brave, but very stupid.

"You know dis bitch?" the leader pointed at me, trying for the conversational approach though I knew he knew Zach was a threat.

Of course _Zach_ was the threat, and _not_ the girl standing against the pole because girls surely _can't_ kick guys asses into the next millennia! What non-sense!

"If you're talking about my friend who you're harassing then yes, I know her. And right now, I'm telling you to back off and leave before things get ugly." He said, coming to stop a few feet in front of the guys. I'd give him a round of applause if this situation weren't so 'serious' for having the guts to stand up to these thugs. Sure, he wasn't very good at comebacks (*cough*he _sucked_*cough*), but he wasn't shaking and he wasn't backing down despite noticing their 'weapons'.

"Boyfriend here thinks he so tough, eh?" said the 'leader' and his cronies laughed at it lamely.

Okay, why the hell does everyone keep thinking anyone who defends me is my boyfriend? And why do conversations like these keep repeating themselves? _What has become of my life!_

"Zach, just…don't." I shook my head at him, telling him through my eyes not to waste his time (and saliva) on them. What Zach _thought_ he read from my eyes was some sort of 'signal' I gave him, telling him to attack them then.

…

If you guys can't tell, I was doing my 'WTF' face at that moment of silence.

He shot into action with an amusing battle cry, lifting his skateboard over his head and smashing it sideways with force on the leader's head. I was impressed at his quick thinking and strange method, but since he's probably never been in a fight (unless it was a battle on like, his Xbox or something), he didn't study any strategies or other miniscule details.

Like the fact that he completely forgot about the guys holding 'weapons', who were now creeping towards him while he continued to bring down his skateboard on the first guy multiple times.

In 4 seconds, I strode towards them quickly and with the momentum, I was able to kick ice pick guy in the side of his head, hard enough to knock him out cold instantly. When I completed my 360 degree turn, I punched switch blade dude once in the face, and a second time in the gut, lifting him up and over my shoulder for good measure and grabbing the blade to pin his pants to the ground so he wouldn't get back up.

Just as I turned around to face Zach, I found him staring incredulously at me, his jaw scrapping against the pavement from shock. Oh, _great_…

"Cam, I didn't know you could fight like that…" he said a little breathlessly, sounding completely mind blown at the moment. I just really hoped he wouldn't noticed anything out of the ordinary, other than, you know, finding out one of your friends could beat the crap out of grown men.

I was tempted to say, "There are a lot of things you don't know about me," and it _is_ true, but there was no need to be mean to him. He'd just risked his life for me, ignoring the precautions and just doing it because he knew it was the right thing. He's stupid to do so, but I was still thankful for his concern.

"Let's just go." I said urgently, quickly calling the police to report about the rapists (they never really said what they were planning to do, but I'll just go with rapists since they were extra annoying and deserved to stay in jail longer), and grabbed Zach's wrist to walk down the street.

Once we were far from the scene of the crime and after a really long, really suffocating game of who could make the situation more awkward, Zach decided to speak up.

"They didn't…do anything to you, did they?" he asked carefully, looking at me out of the corner of his eyes. When I shook my head no, he sighed in relief.

Soon, we reached his house. I've been here a bunch of times, playing soccer and Frisbee in the garden and watching endless re-runs of How I Met Your Mother on his awesome flat-screen. We walked up to the door together, and just as I was about to talk, he beat me to the punch.

"Cam, I can walk you ho-"

I rolled my eyes. "Zach, I really appreciate what you did for me back there, but if there was somebody to worry about between the two of us, it would be you." Boy, was I brutal to Zach's ego. I hope I wasn't too harsh on his pride.

"Cam, _really_-"

"Zach, you know what I'm capable of. You _saw_ what happened. I don't want you defending others no matter what advantage you think you might have because next time you might not have a _skateboard_ at your disposal. Just drop it, okay?" I reprimanded, internally rolling my eyes at how much I sound like a mom. "And there's really no need to worry about me." I said, smiling at him in the most reassuring way I could.

I didn't mean to sound so high and mighty about myself, but I was really just scared for Zach. I knew I shouldn't care for normal people because I couldn't afford to care for too many people, but I've grown close to Zach and I didn't want him to get hurt.

I hugged him goodnight and said goodbye, waving until he entered his house and I was sure that he was safe.

He had a lot of thinking to do. He was probably still in shock by what just happened. What was going through his mind? I hope that wasn't too much for him. I hope he would understand, no matter how strange things look. I wanted to help him understand, but I would rather he sort things out on his own. I couldn't deal with that now because I had some thinking to do myself.

I didn't understand why he would risk his life for me or for any random stranger being mugged in the street. He's human – he couldn't have possibly seen what was in their hands from the distance he was standing at. For all he knew, they could have been carrying guns. I knew I did something similar, that time I rescued Ella from a bunch of bullies, but I knew I had the advantage; Zach, on the other hand, was a whole other case.

It just made me all the more guilty for lying to him about who I was because he was so…_real _and so genuine and I was one big lie.

And I couldn't help but trust him more today. I promised myself that I wouldn't trust anyone other than my flock and my family, but Zach was…_Zach_. I've never met a human, who wasn't my family, who was stupid enough to do something like that.

Zach was teaching me a thing or two about sacrifice.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I stomped down the stairs with more force than necessary, making it known to everyone in this house, heck, making it known to _Australia _that:

1. I was pissed.

2. I was back to my moody self.

3. I was coming down the stairs.

Just when I thought that things could get better, that I was ready to forgive the flock, I find out _this_.

No, it isn't anything major. In fact, if we weren't in eggshells right now it would seem perfectly normal. But we were currently _not_ in good terms with each other, and I didn't trust them, and even the _littlest_ things set me off, so right now I was ready to rip someone's spine out and beat them with it because I was just so…so _furious._

It took me a while to get to the kitchen, striding purposefully through the multiple hallways until I reached the dinning area. Smacking the swinging wooden door with the palm on my hand, I stood in the doorway, hands on my hips, eyes zeroed in on Nudge as I attempted to turn her into a pile of ashes with my glare.

The whole flock (sans me, _obviously_) was eating lunch the next day around the kitchen's island, talking quietly amongst themselves before I showed up.

Since I was _so_ good at avoiding and ignoring people, I had eaten a pitiful and lonely lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (about 12 of 'em) and a liter of orange juice at 9am, steering clear of Iggy since I knew he always started cooking at about 10. Then after lunch, I started working on my homework.

Yes, even after all the _drah-mah_, the heartbreak, and the betrayal, I was still wasting my Saturday on Math exercises and a Composition persuasive essay. My mom was paying a fair amount of money for my family's education, and I've skipped enough days of school moping around. I didn't want to seem like some ungrateful bitch of a daughter.

After finishing my Math homework at 11am (Yeah, I took and hour and a half on Math. Do I look like I calculate my speed while I'm flying, or analyze the ratio and possibilities when we fought against Erasers? Clearly, I should cross out 'Mathematician' on my list of career choices. _Ooh, bummer._), I took a one hour nap (headache again, as always…). It was during the time I was starting up my laptop after my beauty sleep did I realize that something seemed _off._ Then I made the connection.

Looking at my – correction, _the_ flock now, they stared right back with confusion and fear, still wary of my unpredictable actions.

"_Nudge,_" I said sharply, that single word slicing through the tense air, "_Why_ did you touch my laptop?"

Okay, I know that didn't sound as threatening as you expected it to be, and it didn't sound that serious either. But it was a big deal to me.

I could sense it, all over my stuff. I was surprised that it even took me so long to figure it out, but as I poised my fingers over the keys of my laptop, I knew that someone else had touched it.

And that someone was Nudge.

In fact, her hands seemed to have touched a whole lot of other things – papers on my desk, my backpack, drawers, even my closet.

I've gotten used to that feeling – having no privacy or respect from the flock whatsoever. Especially with a mind reader, you should kiss any secretive thoughts you have goodbye. Iggy and Gazzy liked to go through _everything_, and when we first moved in here and mom bought me some 'fashionable' clothes, Nudge and Ella would always come randomly in my room and rummage through my closet as though it was theirs.

Finding out that Nudge went through my stuff recently, it was like a punch in the gut. It would have been okay in the past, but now, I couldn't believe she had the guts to sneak into _my_ room and look through _my_ personal stuff. If she didn't notice, we weren't exactly in speaking terms. Was she that naïve to think I wouldn't figure it out eventually? Did she think she could get _actually_ get away with it?

For a second there, she could've fooled me. Her face was filled with the average annoyance and confusion that anyone accused of a crime would get, scrunching her eyebrows together. But for a spilt second, just a _split second_, her eyes flashed with the tiniest trace of fear, and I knew I'd caught her.

"No, I didn't. Dude, what're you talking about?" she defended herself, raising an eyebrow in question and sounding disbelieving.

In return, I raised an eyebrow, crossing my arms over my chest to look more intimidating, "_Really Nudge?_ You're going lie to me?"

"Max, I _swear-_"

"Your swears and your promises mean _nothing_ to me anymore. And I know you looked through my stuff, Nudge, so tell me what you were looking for." I raised my voice a little and threw my hands up in exclamation, just getting straight to the point and making the flock jump in their seats from my sudden outburst.

"There was _nothing-!_" she cried, clearly scared as she wrung her shirt's hem in her hands.

"_Nudge,_" I said calmly, "What, were you looking for?"

"_Honestly,_ I wasn't looking for anything in particular, okay? I'm sorry I went through your stuff, _I'm sorry!_ I was just, I was just…" And it was then that she clamped her mouth shut, wiping the few tears that rolled down her cheeks with the back of her hand.

I felt like a jerk for making her cry, all because of a _laptop_ (well, it wasn't really about a laptop, but the reason was still petty), and I wanted to comfort her.

It was just too bad I had too much pride in me.

Sighing audibly, I turned around and left the kitchen, biting down the urge to go back, explain myself and apologize (even if it wasn't my fault). It was no use, trying to get a proper reason out of Nudge.

They didn't trust me and I didn't trust them. Simple as that.

Someone, most likely Angel, probably told Nudge to go through my stuff since she was the master hacker in our family. They probably thought I was hiding some 'leader-ly information' they might need or something, and other important details about the different Itex branches. I didn't really know.

Sadly for them, I stored all that information in my head, and all the important things they should find out (e.g. my expiration date) were burned into my skull as well.

They were searching in all the wrong places.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I expected it even before the knock as loud footsteps came running towards my room.

"Max?" Gazzy called from behind the door, and I was slightly stunned to realize that this was actually the first time he was talking to me since the day I came back.

"Yeah?" I responded, which was kind of a signal that I was allowing him to enter. I was in an unusually PMS-y mode these past few days but I could act civil and nice when I wanted to.

He popped his head through the small space between the door, his big blue eyes looking frantic, I couldn't help but stand up from my bed.

"What is it, Gazzy?" I was starting to get scared. Was there anyone in trouble? Was there any threat in our house?

"Max, your friend Zach is here."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Following closely behind Gazzy's heels, I ran down the many hallways while slipping on a hoodie. I smiled to myself when I noticed that Gazzy's wings were pressed tightly against his back, knowing that he didn't completely forget the precautions of being around humans.

Once I made my way down the stairs and rounded the corner to face the entrance doors, I saw Zach in the flesh, clad in shorts, a hoodie and Chucks as always, standing with his hands in his pockets while looking around.

"Hey, what're you doing here?" I said, making my way towards him and trying to sound casual. I knew it was just Zach, but I was more tense than usual. He was actually in _my _house. He was the first person who didn't know about our secret to see and enter the flock's residence. At least _one _bad thing was going to happen, I was sure of it.

Nothing ever goes well in my world.

"I'm picking you up." He smiled sweetly at me, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. He was _too_ much of a gentleman; it was getting kind of annoying.

"I said to meet me in the park, Zach." I said exasperatedly, putting my hands on my hips.

After I confronted Nudge in the kitchen, I continued on with the things I planned for the day. It was useless to dwell on whatever the flock planned; I liked to keep moving forward. When there was nothing left to do, I called Zach and we planned to meet up in the park to hang out.

Apparently, 'meeting in the park' translates to 'go to Cam's house' now. Who would've known.

"Well, I'm here already, so I'll just wait for you to get read-" We both froze the moment we heard Nudge's voice resounded in the hallways, cutting Zach's sentence short.

"_Iiiiggggggyyyyy!_ Could you please make me some waffles for a snack? I'm huuuunnggrrrryyyyy!" she said as I heard her footsteps coming down the stairs.

At the same time, Iggy came running from the direction of the entertainment room, holding a prototype of a bomb in his hands as he shouted back, "Sure thing! Hold on a sec!"

And it was then too that Angel decided to come running from the hallway across the stairs, her wings out and unfurled behind her, all 8 feet of its gleaming white glory exposed to the world.

And Zach and I just stared as the scene unfolded on front of us, my heart sinking deeper and deeper within me as disaster after disaster struck.

Okay, so I was wrong.

_All_ the worst things were happening at the _same_ time right _on front_ of Zach.

_Fantastic._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**Sorry that was so short. :| **You guys deserved so much more but I have a lot of editing to do for future chapters so, yeah. I'd rather you guys wait and read something nice. :)

**Please check out my recent oneshots: 'Look Hard Enough' and 'Dreaming of Reality'.** They were for Valentine's Day and personally, I don't think those stories got enough love. :( I worked really hard on them, especially 'Look Hard Enough' (It was 8 damn pages asdfghjkl;;!1)

I made them for my **1****st**** year anniv.** here on Fanfiction, and I guess they're also there to **cheer up your spirits because of Angel: A Maximum Ride novel.** I know I need cheering up. (Maybe I'll have enough energy to rant about it in my next update, and when everyone has already read it.)

Also, I just read the **Scott Pilgrim** graphic novels and watched the movie.

Go out and get it. 'Nuff said.

Oh, I'm also reading a book called **Zombies vs. Unicorns** written by many different authors like Cassandra Clare, Libba Bray, Scott Westerfeld and many more. It is incomprehensibly legit and mucho awesome. Get that too.

**Can I please get 12 reviews now?** :D They keep getting lesser and lesser. _Ugh._ What am I doing wrong?

Next update might be the week after this week. Till then…

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	32. Twenty Questions

Whaddup home-skillet biscuits? :)

Many thanks to **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **MaeWithWings97**, **HEYHEY**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **xxSurfingDreamsxx**, **booklover98**, **Fireflies371**, **DancingintheRayne**, **rando**, **SeaSaltChocolate** (also for reviewing 3 times, you crazy girl! :D) and **MaxFangIggyNudgeGazzyAngel** for reviewing chapter 31!

Much obliged **AnikaandAj** for being my 200th reviewer! Woohoo!

Anyways, I know this chapter **seems long**, but it's a very quick read. Enjoy chapter 32!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

All 6 of us (Gazzy was right behind me, barely suppressing his horrified expression) stared at each other for a few seconds, panic and fear rising with each passing moment.

I saw Zach stare at the contraption in Iggy's hands at first, before coming to glue his eyes on Angel's wings, his eyeballs practically popping out with disbelief and shock. _How the hell were we gonna explain this?_

The flock discreetly looked towards Angel for any signals or solutions to the problem, but she was biting her lip and looking around wildly, clearly showing that she didn't know how to solve this.

Within half a second, I immediately took over the situation, going into 'older-sister-Cam mode' and sighing audibly to get everyone to look at me. It was amazing how quick my mind worked to think of excuses; maybe it was because I was so good at lying it just came naturally now.

"Krystal, make your own waffles. Tyler, go help her out," I said, pointing towards the kitchen where they both retreated to.

"James, what did I tell you about trying to repair the old radio? It's not going to work; it's too old," I faced Iggy, and going along with it, he nodded somberly and went back the way he came.

"Isabella," I turned to Angel next, approaching her like a mother would, "Sweetie, stop wearing your wings around the house. Halloween isn't for another 8 months," I smiled tenderly at her and bent down to kiss the top of her head, "Maybe next time, okay? Go put it in your closet."

While I was acting like the bossy old sister that I was posing as on the outside, I was screaming and panicking and continuously chanting, "_Crap, crap, crap…_" inside my head.

I blocked Angel from Zach's view and she visibly relaxed. Giving me a small smile, she mumbled a shy, "Okay, Cam…" and ran up the stairs like the cute baby sister she was supposed to be.

Turning back around to face Zach, I rolled my eyes and gave a breathless laugh, "And I have to act like the responsible one because Nick is never around." I said with exasperation, remembering that Nick was my 'older' brother.

Zach chuckled. "Do you still need time to get ready?" he asked.

"No, no. We can leave now." I said a little too quickly, giving him a huge grin and ushering him outside.

Even if I was only wearing shorts and a hoodie over my shirt, inappropriate clothes for _Connecticut_, I ignored the goosebumps on my arms and legs and locked the door behind me.

I couldn't risk having Zach staying any longer in the house. He was only there for about a minute and already he witnessed Iggy making a bomb, Nudge calling Iggy by his real name, and Angel going down the stairs like a frickin' Victoria's Secret Angel with her wings exposed for the world to see.

Sometimes I wonder how we've lived in this town for almost 10 months undetected.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Man, this movie makes watching water evaporate sound like a good idea at the moment." Zach said, staring at his TV with a hilarious WTF face.

"Tell me about it. I could feel my brain smashing against the walls of my skull in an attempt to kill itself. Can we please just…turn the damn thing off." I said, stuffing my face grumpily with the half-eaten bowl of popcorn in between us.

Since it was freezing outside and Zach started to notice icicles forming on my legs (I was being sarcastic, if you didn't notice), we decided to hang out in his house instead to watch a movie and eat ourselves sick with whatever we could find.

We were only 11 minutes into the movie and already I was thinking of flying back home and facing my family. Better that than this crap. (You know, I've been complaining a lot about movies lately – I should really be a critic.)

Turning off the huge flat screen TV, Zach shifted his position on the couch to face me, pulling the checkered fuzzy blanket on his lap higher and rubbing his upper arms for heat.

"Still feuding with the familia?" he asked out of nowhere, causing me to freeze for a second.

It didn't come as a surprise that he noticed. Luckily he wasn't the nosy type. I just nodded in response, avoiding his gaze.

"Aww…don't worry. Happiness is just around the corner, Cam." He tried, he really did, but he just _really_ sucked at replies.

"Too bad the world's round, dumbshit." I told him without skipping a beat, and he bumped my shoulder, laughing silently to himself.

I guess I shouldn't have been so mean to Zach.

He was the only friend I had left (aside from Bris, but we were never really close) and he's put up with my attitude. He tried protecting me from 'rapists' (I still believe they were rapists), offered to walk me home that day, picked me up from my house _today_, and he still acted good-natured and carefree about everything. He was too good of a person.

"How the hell are you not dying of hypothermia?" he asked me, leaning his head back on the soft plush sofa.

"I dunno. I'm used to it?" I said, drawing the blanket he gave me higher on my legs to make it seem like I felt at least a little bit cold, when in fact, the temperature seemed fine to me.

And even if it was cold, there was something about Zach's house that was just so…homey and warm and everything that makes you feel comfortable.

Zach lived in a cozy bungalow with the dining table inside the kitchen, the kitchen right in front of the living room/entertainment room, and all the bedrooms located down the hallway connecting to the living room.

The fireplace in the living room seemed to warm the whole house and it felt like Mrs. Anderson was perpetually ready with hot chocolate whenever I came over.

Zach's house was the kind of house I wish my family lived in, not some hugeass glass and marble house that had a ballroom, a theater room and all other rooms that were useless to us. Sure, we were a lot in the family, but with such a big house, we may as well have been countries apart.

He raised his head and eyed me funny, "Didn't you come from Arizona? Isn't that like, fry-a-whole-breakfast-meal-on-your-head state?" he asked and I almost blanked there.

_Shit. Uhh…uhh…_"Connecticut kinda grew on me, you know? And my family and I used to move around a lot. Seattle, New York…" I trailed off, pretending like I knew what I was talking about.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking really shocked; I just nodded.

We were quiet for a while as I desperately tried to think of something else to talk about. Just as I was about to open my mouth to ask him if he wanted to watch a different movie, he voiced his thoughts first.

"Come to think of it, there's a lot I don't know about you…" he said.

Oh, I did _not_ like where this conversation was going…

"Well, I am new here…"

"Cam, we're been friends for about a year now and I all know about you is that your name is Cam Ride, Nick is your older brother and James is a family friend who lives with you, you've got other siblings who I don't know about, you moved here from Arizona, you've got a boyfriend named Felix, apparently you were very irresponsible in the past, your father works in the medical field and that your family's got money to throw in the air." He gave me a pointed look.

"_Hey_, you know a lot of things about me! My life's not that complex, really." He _so_ did not know a thing about me. Felix? Arizona? _Irresponsible? _I can't believe I came up with so many crazy lies. My second life never fails to fascinate me.

"And I only found out about your siblings when James mentioned it during lunch. I found out you had a boyfriend when Mitzi accidentally blurted it out. I found out about your tattoo that day by accident. I found out your dad works in the medical field that one time he visited you in school. And the fact that your house looks like it has a secret mall, amusement park and ice skating rink somewhere deep inside makes me just a _little_ suspicious that you could probably buy a province. Just a little." He smiled sweetly at me I glared at him.

_Ugh._ His sarcasm drives me up the wall. I can't believe he just used sarcasm against me. _Sarcasm. _That's _my_ ultimate forte – I'm the Queen of Sarcasm!

"Why is it so important to you, anyway?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I dunno. We've been friends for a while now and it seems strange I don't even know your favorite color or-"

"It's teal," I interrupted, "My favorite color's teal. Actually, green and blue are my favorite colors and everything else in between." I told him, hoping he'd be satisfied with that.

He chuckled a little to himself then suddenly lifted his head, his eyes shining with that familiar look he gets when he has an idea or a plan.

"Why don't we play 20 Questions?" he asked, smiling more and more at his idea.

"Uhh…no thanks." I said and was about to reach for the remote to turn the TV back on when he grabbed it and placed it behind him.

"Aww, come on Cam! A little get-to-know-you game. No backing out; no lying. You can ask me anything, and vice versa. It'll be fun." He started to sit straighter on the couch to face me better and it was then that I knew I was trapped.

Would it seem rude or weird to say no to Zach? Keeping to myself too much was not typical teenage girl behavior. Or was it?

It was just an innocent game of 20 Questions anyway. He just wanted to know more about me – my favorite color, favorite animal, favorite food – those kinds of things. Zach was harmless anyways, and among all my human friends I trusted him the most. I decided to give it a go.

"Fine. I'll go first," I said hastily, "So who, where and when was your first kiss?"

He did say I could as him _anything…_

"Angelica Cohen, Jake Ross' house party, 8th grade." He smiled smugly back, like it was no big deal at all, "So what're the names of your parents?"

"Val and Jeb. What's your most embarrassing moment?"

He thought about it for a few seconds, looking to the ceiling before answering, "I was trying to impress a girl once in the skate park. I wasn't very good at skating yet though and when I tried grinding on a downwards rail, my skateboard slipped out of my hands…And there was nothing between my legs but the railing, if you know what I mean…" He looked elsewhere as he said the last part and I laughed at loud, imagining the scenario.

Zach didn't waste time though; as I continued to laugh, he moved on to the next question, "What are you parents' jobs?"

"My mom's a vet; my dad's a scientist," I answered simply, "How old are your siblings?"

"My older brother Marco is 18, Patricia is 8, and Liam is 2. How many siblings do you have?"

"Three. Ever had any pets?"

"A lot actually, but they all died. So what're their names?"

"Isabella, Tyler and Nick. Favorite animal?" It was weird; it was like we were on a roll. No other comments were said as we exchanged questions and answers without stopping to think for too long.

"Ducks. So the other girl from a while ago is…?"

"Krystal. She's a family friend. She lives with us like James. Favorite color?"

"Red. Okay…so why did Krystal call James Iggy a while ago?"

Again, I almost panicked. And _again_, I thought quickly of a lie to pile onto my Mount Everest-sized mountain of lies. "The kids gave that nickname. Favorite Disney princess?"

"I'll have to say…Mulan."

"Mulan isn't a princess." I deadpanned.

"_Whatever._ She's a _hero_ of _China_. Anyways, what's the nickname the kids gave you?"

"Max," _Heh heh._ A little insertion of the truth for ya there, "Favorite band?"

"Dream Theater or A7X. What's Nick's?"

"Fang." I said flatly, though inside I was sniggering. _Real mature, Max…_

"Fang? _Really?_" He raised an eyebrow, on the verge of laughing.

I nodded and smiled smugly at him, "I'm counting those as 2 questions, you know. Anyway, deepest darkest secret?" I grinned evilly. Oh, this was going to be _good…_

"It's called a _secret_ for a reason, Cam." He glared though it had no effect on me. Once you've experienced one of Fang's glares, nothing could compare.

"You said I could ask _anything…_" I said and he sighed audibly.

"_Fine._ I still sing…in the shower. Usually while I'm taking a bath, I think about scary stuff, like horror movies and whatnot, and I sing to calm myself down." He said slowly, not looking at me. I was tempted to laugh but then that would be too mean. Besides, that secret wasn't so bad as compared to, say, having wings and being tortured for the first 10 years of my life?

"Back to the game," he said, his voice clearly telling me I was not to speak of this to anyone, "What's up with the nicknames?"

"I honestly have no idea. Anyways, what's something you would save if your house was burning?"

"My sketchbook maybe…Or Mr. Snickerdoodle." He slightly blushed at the end of his sentence.

My mind was slightly blown that he drew, but more importantly…

"Who the _hell_ is Mr. Snickerdoodle?"

"My stuffed animal toy…" He pulled the blanket up to his neck and tried burying his face in it, "Now if you don't mind me asking…have you ever had a thing for James?"

And it was then that my mind shorted out.

He asked it so quickly and so suddenly, it knocked the air out of me. How the hell did he go from asking about family nicknames to asking if I had a crush on Iggy? _Iggy._

My mind cannot even comprehend it and every time I repeat the words he said in my head, I could feel bile rise up in my throat. It was just _wrong_.

"Ew God, _no!_" I exclaimed, disgust and shock evident on my face that Zach started to laugh because I probably looked comical.

"Anyone in school?" he asked this time and I gave him a pointed look.

"Zach, I have I boyfriend." I reminded him, even if in his mind it was a none-existent boyfriend.

"Not even a teensy weensy crush on Bris?" he smirked at me and I pushed his head back with the palm of my hand.

"Okay, now you're just shitting me."

"Not even me?" He asked, still laughing at my reaction from the previous question.

I decided to answer his question with a question. If he was going to make me feel uncomfortable, he was going to feel it with me. "Why? Did _you_ have a crush on me?" I asked smugly, waiting for his face to turn red in embarrassment.

"Yeah, I did." He said it so normally, even laughing a little.

I, on the other hand, suddenly stopped smiling and widened my eyes. "You ain't serious."

"Why wouldn't I be?" he smiled, "It was a long time ago, near the start of the school year when we first became friends."

He was waiting for a reaction out of me but all I could do was stare at him in shock, completely stunned with this new piece of information.

It was really strange knowing this, having your guy best friend have a crush on you for a moment. What did I do that made him think this? Why did _he_ have a crush on _me?_ I was sloppy, and tomboy-ish and full of sarcasm. Nothing charming at all. (Makes you wonder what made Fang fall for me, aye?)

It was like he knew what I was thinking then as he continued, "I dunno, Cam. Prepare yourself for some cheesy overload but honestly, there's just something about you that's just so…_amazing_. I can't quite put my finger on it, but you're different in a whole other way that makes you…just…_you_." He said, looking at the blanket instead of me.

Okay, so maybe that was one of the sweetest things I've ever heard and he swelled my head just a little, but it was still strange to know Zach had a crush on me.

Just…okay, _whoa._ I will never understand humans.

"You're not still…?" I asked slowly, having to make sure there wasn't going to be anything awkward between us.

Zach chuckled lightly and smirked at me. "Aww look, I'm making you blush! Let me salvage what dignity I have left and say that I got over it. I don't want to ruin our friendship and besides, your brother scares me. If I dated you, I think I'd be first on Nick's hitlist or something." He said, rolling his eyes.

I sighed in relief and got back on track. "So where were we?"

"You just asked me a question, and now it's my turn." He smirked again. _Would he quit that!_

"Whatever." I mumbled.

"So…what's going on between you, James and Nick?" he asked slowly, looking at the now empty popcorn bowl instead of my eyes.

From feeling relieved, anger suddenly coursed through me. "It's none of your business, Zach."

"_Hey!_ I told you my biggest secret and my most embarrassing moment, Cam. This is 20 questions. You can't make excuses."

Damn Zach and his logic. I wished I could argue something back, but he'd been so honest and cooperative throughout the entire game. Besides, it wasn't like it was such a huge secret either that we were fighting. It was the first time that people in school have seen us apart. Surely they've noticed things.

"We're just having a little disagreement, that's all."

"Then why don't you just apologize?" Zach said instantly.

I drew my head back. "_Psh!_ Me? _Apologize?_ Excuse you, it was not _my_ fault. They're the ones who started this." I crossed my arms over my chest, not believing my ears. _Was he siding with them?_

"Oh c'mon Cam. Be the bigger person. Don't you want to fix things with them, especially your brother?"

"_Of course I do! _Wait. What do you mean 'especially my brother'?" I questioned back, getting way more defensive with each passing second.

"Aren't you close to your brother?"

I faux-scoffed like the idea was crazy. "Uhh…_not really._"

"Cam, you _act_ like best friends. It's kinda strange, actually…" He nodded with wide eyes and it was then that I started to panic.

"No we _don't._"

"Yeah, you do. Sometimes when you think it's not obvious, you guys just look at each other like you know _exactly_ what the other person's thinking. It's weird.

"You're protective of each other, as brother and sisters should be, but when you have your little arguments when you think no one can hear you, you guys sound like…like an old married couple." He said and with every truthful word, the more my feet were itching to get out of here.

I underestimated Zach. He was actually very perceptive and analytical. What else has he seen us do? Did he know anything else and was just keeping it for blackmail later? Did he know the truth? Oh God, I was sweating bullets now, and the heat from the fireplace was not helping…

"Okay, ew. Zach, we're _siblings_. Please, just…stop talking." I waved my hand, feigning disgust. _Please change the topic, please change the topic!_

"You're step-siblings, Cam. My ideas aren't far-fetched, you know."

"You _know?_" I exclaimed, my eyes widening and my jaw dropping. So Zach knew? He knew all along we weren't really related. What else did he observe from us…?

"Of course I know; I'm not an idiot. You guys look nothing alike, and while no one in school knows how your parents look like, you just don't _act_ like siblings."

"Siblings can be close…" I whispered, already knowing that he was winning.

"Well, there's just something different about the both of you…" he sounded thoughtful now. What was he thinking…? Please tell me he didn't piece anything together.

"Zach, what exactly are you implying…?" I asked slowly, already dreading his answer. I tried to calm my breathing and compose myself but this was all too much for one day and he knew too much of the truth.

"Cam, what is your relationship with Nick?" he finally gathered the courage to look me straight in the eyes, his penetrating emerald ones that were his most prominent feature piercing mine. It was hard not to look away because I was trapped – my butt seeming glued to this couch with Zach waiting for my answer as he stared me down.

He knew I wasn't actually siblings with Fang. He knew I was close to Fang. Is it possible that he's pieced our relationship together?

It would've been easy to tell him that yeah, we were dating. Mitzi knew, and even I trusted Zach more. That was the easier solution.

And yet as I stared back with my brown eyes, not backing down, I hesitated. And when I felt my hesitation, I knew it meant I wasn't really to tell him.

I was forced to tell Mitzi; she found out the truth and there was no other explanation to it. But with Zach, I could continue to feed him all the lies I could think of. It just didn't seem right for him to know, and I know it sounds like a horrible thing for me to do, but I wanted to keep as much people as I could in the dark.

Knowing the truth wasn't safe, and if Zach found out a little more, even something as insignificant as my relationship with Fang, it could jeopardize him one way or another. Anybody who knew too much wasn't safe anymore.

"I'm done playing." I said with apathy as I stood up from the couch and headed for the kitchen.

"Cam, we made a deal we were going to play the game-!"

I turned around sharply and looked down at him. "No, I'm not playing anymore. You've asked your 20 questions Zach, and I'm not subjected to answering anymore." I said a little too harshly and headed for the kitchen.

Once I was in there, I downed a glass of water quickly and gripped the counter, feelings so conflicted and helpless.

I felt like a child – not knowing what to do from here.

Now Zach knew. Maybe not the whole truth, but he knew something was up. In fact, he knew something was up for a long time.

I felt like crying, knowing that the one person who I felt I could turn to was now part of the equation somehow. I couldn't run to anyone anymore; no more save haven where I could pretend to act like a normal 16-year old girl and just let go of my problems for a second.

It was weird to feel sad about something like this, but after experiencing a normal life I kind of liked it. I've accepted I was different, and no matter what I would always be a genetic freak, but experiencing high school and friends and studying showed me what I was supposed to have.

And Zach finding out that I could possibly have something with Fang kind of symbolized the end of it. That even my innocent life of homework and hell-ish school teachers could be ruined because of what I really was.

I couldn't run away from what I really was.

The whole weight of it all crashed down on me and a sob escaped my lips. With the hand that wasn't covering my mouth, I clawed at my chest, feeling the pressure there suffocating me.

Being reminded of the truth created a gap inside of me, an unexplainable void that made me feel uneasy and helpless. I haven't allowed myself to think about any of this, but now that my mind thought about it, everything was just so clear.

I was going to die soon.

My family was falling apart.

I didn't feel like I was a part of anything.

Fang and I were still mad at each other.

I was growing weaker and weaker each day.

And Zach, and high school, and everything else that came with it – I was going to lose those too.

And the worst part? I haven't done anything to stop it.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"I'm back." I shouted to no one in particular as I entered the front door, heading straight to the kitchen for a glass of orange juice.

Despite the awkwardness after storming out of the living room, I exited Zach's kitchen with dry eyes and my winning smile, pretending nothing happened. Zach noticed this too, and I could tell he wanted to bring it up again, but from the slight iciness of my gaze he was smart enough to drop it.

He knew I was dating Fang.

From the moment I avoided his question, he pieced everything together. It was all in his deep green eyes.

I wished he didn't figure it out.

I wished he was still innocent and clueless, but his eyes gave away everything, and from then I could only act like none of this ever happened. Pretending it never happened won't keep the truth and danger away, but I was willing to go on doing so if it helped just a little.

Mrs. Anderson drove me home after dinner like the kind and motherly person she was. Zach came with too, and even walked me to my door. We said our goodbyes and he hugged me, which surprised me because I thought he would've been disgusted.

I did not understand that boy.

With his arms wrapped around my waist, his head on my shoulder, I could feel pity and understand from his embrace. I actually wanted to cry from an overload of emotions (I've been way too emotional for my well-being, I was ready to jump off the deep end) – scared Zach knew the truth, paranoia that he might use it against me, relief I still had him – but I pushed it down and gave him a sad smile before entering the house.

Passing by the entertainment room to get to the kitchen, my stomach turned with unease as I felt the flock's presence there. I avoided their gazes and walked as normally as I could, trying not to let my panic show.

I ended up drinking 3 glasses of orange juice, continuously pouring from the carton into a glass, then proceeding to chug it down. When I slammed my third empty glass onto the counter with force, something in the back of my mind told me to _turn…_

And when I whipped around I came face to face with Fang, his nose literally about 2 inches from mine that I went cross-eyed.

My heart immediately started pounding against my rib cage, my breath getting stuck in my throat.

It's been a week since I've been within a yard's distance near Fang, and to have him suddenly invade my personal bubble shocked me.

There have been times when we would get much closer. There have been times when there was no space between at us at all.

But right now, with Fang standing right on front of me, his knees bumping mine, I felt uncomfortable, and admittedly, scared.

I was actually scared of Fang now.

I never thought I'd ever say those words.

His eyes held nothing – no emotions, feelings, thoughts, signs – and since I was so used to being the only one able to read him, I shrank back onto the counter, my back digging into the edge of the marble.

"Fang." I addressed him, trying not to make it too obvious that I was bending backwards with my elbows on the counter, trying to put more space between us.

"Max." he said back, and I could feel him pressing closer, feel his breath fanning my face and making my heart beat faster.

"Max, we need to talk."

Those five words triggered a reaction within me, and I tried slipping out of his grasp the moment I thought he let his guards down.

I was too slow thought, because I'd only been able to get a few inches away from him when he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back to where I was, trapping me as he placed both his hands on the counter on either side of me.

There was no escaping now.

"What do _you_ want?" I tried sounding mean, but we both heard the fear in that question. There was a brief flash of _something_ in his eyes, but he quickly composed himself and went back to business.

"I just want to talk, Max. Let me expla-" he pressed closer, giving me the ability to feel his heartbeat, and I swear, I could've wet myself right then and there.

"_Well I don't want to talk to you!_" I shrieked, just wanting to get away.

I didn't want to talk to Fang. I didn't want to feel anymore pain than I already felt. Before I could solve things with him I had to be ready. I had to be ready for anything he threw at me – comebacks, shouts, _a possible break-up…_

"Max, _I-_"

I couldn't take it anymore, so I did it.

I did the one thing I thought I'd never do in my whole entire life.

I punched Fang with as much force as I could, right in the middle of his face.

I didn't want to talk to him. I didn't want to face anyone. I didn't want a confrontation. I didn't want my heart to get broken again.

It was the only thing I could think of at the moment and I couldn't let him see just how scared I was.

If it were an ordinary person, he would've been rushed to the hospital, but with Fang he just cursed once and clutched his bleeding nose, bending forward from the pain.

I slipped out of the small space and rushed out of the kitchen and up to my room, not once turning back.

And once I reached my room, I let the regret, guilt, sadness and fear I felt swallow me up as I stared at my shaking hands.

I let the tears falls on my bruised knuckles that had hurt my best friend.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Sorry if that seemed like a waste of your time, but there you have it. :)

Now you know a little more about the Chivalrous Zach. I know some of you (*cough*Shell*cough*) were worried that Max might've started to take a liking to Zach, or vice versa, so I decided to clear that up.

Also, **if you don't get why Zach is so understanding** – he's just a really good friend. :) Think about it: If I was as good as Zach I would stick by my friend's side no matter how it looks like. He knows Max could possibly be dating her brother and yet since he's such a good person, he's letting her tell him when she's ready, and he's not going to judge her either.

**If you're getting sick and tired of Emo Max** – deal with it. Imagine what she's going through (re: Max's list of horrible happenings above) and she has no one to turn to. Besides, she's only 16. _What do we cry about?_ Break-ups and 2 long tests the next day to cram for?

Okay, so I expect 14 reviews. :P **Can I get 14 reviews again please?** You've already reached chapter 32 – show it some love, man.

My traffic reads 5 dozen visitors for the last chapter for the month of February. I only get 14 reviews. (And SeaSaltChocolate and AnikaandAj reviewed more than once) **Where is the love, people? :'(**

**Expect an update** probably the week after this week if I'm not busy cramming my butt off.

Peace out, stay real and all that shit.

.: Tiffany :.


	33. California Blowout

Long time no update, eh?

Thank you, thank you, _THANK YOU_ to **AHHHHH**, **Max**, **Hehey**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **blackiee**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **AnikaandAj**, **MaeWithWings97**, **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **DancingintheRayne**, **fireflies371**, **JealousMindsThinkAlike**, **Obsession Doesnt Cover It** and **SharpestSatire **for reviewing! You guys are fantabulous. ;)

**I'm sorry** that this is late. And for not really proof-reading this properly. And that this might suck and sound so not Maximum Ride. I think it's the stress that's making me write…weird.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Things were getting better.

As the days passed, I've been exerting more effort to fix things like I said I would.

Things were still strained – there was no hugging and crying in each others arms – but we dealt with it in our own ways and progress was slow, but evident.

Instead of going out of my way to avoid them and pretend like they weren't there, I would greet them in the mornings and shot them the faintest of smiles when I would catch them looking my way.

I would even eat meals with them, actually acknowledging them whenever I would pass them something or vice versa. I was able to sit with them when they would watch TV, and the kids stopped holding their breaths after the 3rd day they realized I wasn't going to bite their heads off.

With Zach, we went on like nothing ever happened. And I was thankful that he was covering for me. We still hung out, ate lunch, talked, and fooled around, but neither of us ever mentioned that incident again.

As long as he kept my secret and continued to be my friend, I was content with that.

I was also able to control the vomiting and headaches better. Not that I could choose when they would happen, but I was much better at hiding the signs now. Enduring many instances when my head would explode in pain, I've (sadly) gotten used to it already. All I needed to do was bite my lip and try to focus on something else (normally how crappy my life was) and it was fine.

The nosebleeds and the vomiting were a little trickier, but with practice and timed bathroom breaks, I was able to perfect the art of disguising it too.

Monday night I visited Gazzy before he went to bed, knowing that he was afraid I was going to leave again.

Tuesday I sat by Nudge's bed when she had a nightmare, something she didn't completely remember the next day as she shot me a confused look during breakfast.

Wednesday, I actually struck up a conversation with Iggy as he cooked dinner, finding it easy to talk to him about random things and keeping my voice pleasant when I found out that he was against Angel's plans.

Thursday, when I bumped into Gazzy on my way down the stairs before school, I remembered to ruffle his hair as I passed by, one of the few signs of affections I would use for him since we weren't the huggy type of people.

And on Friday, that was when Angel snapped.

Admittedly, I haven't been paying much attention to her. Of course I still loved her like a little sister, but she seemed to be alienating herself from everyone else. I wasn't going to go through the trouble of trying to reconnect with her if she was acting like a bitch to everyone; _she_ was the one who broke _my_ heart. I didn't owe her anything.

I'd missed the whole argument, entering the dinning room just as Angel stormed out, breathing raggedly with her face flushed.

Everyone at the table, including my mom and Ella, were staring at the concrete arch she'd just exited with wide eyes, completely shocked that they'd just been told by a 7-year old.

"What happened?" I asked as I took my usual seat next to Fang. I still wasn't talking to him but we made a mutual mental agreement not to bring the rest of the flock into our mess. We were going to fix this on our own sometime.

"_Fricken brat…_" Nudge muttered under her breath and I scolded her.

To think Angel and Nudge were treating each other this way when before, they would always be on the same side. In fact, it was usually Angel and Nudge versus _me_ in our arguments. They had that 'mental connection' just like I did with Fang. They were _best friends_. What happened to them?

"She's just stressed, that's all." My mom reassured everyone, plastering a smile on her face. I shot her a sad half-smile in return, appreciating the effort. My mom always did like to see the best in people.

"She's being a _b-_" I kicked Iggy under the table. "-ad girl because I guess she feels pressured she needs to do something leader-ly. Like she needs to come up with better ideas and prove to everyone she's capable." Iggy finished, scoping up the remains of his food and shoveling it into his mouth.

"No one ever said being leader was easy." I said, looking down at my plate as I poured an ocean of gravy over my mashed potato mountains. "Besides, what's so stressful about her job now? She didn't have to take care of 5 other people with no food, no clothes, no money, no shelter _and_ no plans _whilst_ trying to run away from genetically-engineered wolves who wanted them dead. Now _that's_ stress." I said, my voice tinged with bitterness.

"And why would she feel the need to prove something?" I continued sharply, "It's not like anybody's gonna _kick her off_ her post or anything. Why would _anyone_ think to do that to their leader _anyway?_" I suddenly looked up at the flock with narrowed eyes and notice each and every one of them avoid my gaze.

Okay, so maybe there were still times when I would lose my cool. But I was healing, slowly trying to forgive the people I love for the unforgivable. I was only (partially) human, after all.

The air was tense for a moment before my mom decided to break it up, assigning clean up duty and telling everyone to get to bed early, despite the fact that it was a Friday night.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Today I learned just how many curse words I knew as I continued to repeat them in my head, standing still in between Fang and Iggy as we posed for the cameras.

So this was what Angel's been stressing about, what she was so afraid to tell me 2 weeks ago when I'd eavesdropped on them.

Apparently she'd planned a mission for the flock, teaming up with the CSM to form this event. This event today, held in California, where we would clean the beach and pick up the trash to save the earth.

It was so very touching, it warms my heart.

At first I'd said no – in fact I'd said, "Oh _hell no!_ Like I'm going to fricken' prance around the beach like Baywatch in a skimpy bikini while people took pictures of me 'saving the world'. Absolutely _not!_" – but eventually, my mom had convinced me to go with them since 1.) I was supposed to save the world and this was part of the job description, 2.) I was still a part of the flock and it would be weird for them to be only 5 in the pictures and 3.) I was the _face_ of CSM. I couldn't say no to a CSM mission.

I guess this was something different, instead of breaking and entering different Itex branches all the time, except it was kind of the same thing. We were saving the world but it didn't really make much of a difference – Angel wasn't any better at this job than I was.

"Okay, enough pictures." I said coldly, turning around swiftly and almost whacking a photographer with one of my wings, knowing that everyone here heard the tone of my voice and making sure they backed off.

Yeap, Miss Cranky Pants Maximum Ride is the face of CSM. I didn't know what my mom was thinking when she signed me up for this.

We were currently in an unpopulated area of some beach, an indent on the shore that wasn't normally visited by swimmers due to its rocky flooring and dark waters.

The only people that came were the flock, my mom, 3 other CSM people, a few photographers and a couple civilians who knew about us. We were very known to polluted places where we'd done air shows in the past so there was no point in really hiding our wings and identities.

Back in Connecticut, the CSM was just a small town organization that only the larger companies knew about. They didn't think it fit to put posters of the flock and me with our wings out-stretched while we were currently laying low there. But here in California, they stuck posters and banners everywhere of us posing so righteously, it was _embarrassing_.

I grabbed the flashlight and durable plastic bag where I was supposed to put all the trash I picked up and headed for the water, tugging down the slightly tight-fitted forest green rash guard with frustration.

The flock and I were all wearing forest green, since that was the color of the CSM. Obviously _not_ appreciating the fact that I had to wear a _bikini_ (I didn't _actually_ think I'd have to wear one when I agreed to this!), I made an agreement that I was only going to cooperate if I got to wear board shorts like Fang and Iggy, and a rash guard over my bikini.

Going ahead of everyone else, I swam deeper and deeper into the dark water with no trouble, breathing like I would on land with the help of my gills. Soon Angel and Fang were swimming right next to me, doing the same thing I was.

It was kind of cool, I'd have to admit. Just swimming around with fishes and appreciating the multicolored corals and marine life.

I didn't think there'd be a lot of trash here at first (since it was so deserted), but if you looked hard enough and really swam closer to the ocean floor you could see all sorts of garbage – soda cans, plastic bags, deflated floating devices, sunglasses, and I even saw a plasic monoblock chair. (I think I'll leave that to Fang to pick up…)

I figured that the ocean's current swept them all here and the trash just got tangled and stuck in the reefs and rocks. It was sad, realizing that people were destroying such beautiful places like these.

We picked up the trash in the ocean for about an hour and a half, swimming back to the shore all pruny with our bags full. We gathered together with Iggy, Nudge and Gazzy, who'd stayed in the shallow waters and on the shore picking up trash, for another round of pictures.

In the midst of standing still for the cameras once again, a sudden scream from the crowds near the trees erupted, and immediately the flock and I tensed.

_Oh crap._

Instantaneously, everyone began shoving and screaming all over the place, leaving the flock and I confused.

A scream in our world didn't mean Logan Lerman or Zach Efron was suddenly going to materialize out of thin air – it meant _danger_, possible even a whole massacre of innocent people. But how could there be a threat when we've been lying low for so long? When the CSM practically _hextupled_ the amount of security, a tuple for each of us? When I'd made absolutely positively sure that there weren't going to be any precautions before our little gig?

I'd made sure of _everything_; keep in mind kids, I was still the paranoid bird-kid I used to be.

My heartbeat quickened and adrenaline rushed through my veins like it always did, right before battle. We had to react, and _fast_. I didn't know what was happening but when someone screams, we could immediately assume that people's lives were at stake.

We could see almost all of the photographers and civilians leave in the snap of a finger, flailing their arms and getting into their cars.

I was about to start barking orders, but then I remembered that I wasn't leader anymore. My heart sank with the depressing truth.

"Angel, _do something!_" I shouted to her as we all spread out and looked around us for any threats. The alcove in the part of the beach where we were at was only surrounded by trees and rock formations, leaving surprise ambushes possible from every direction.

"Umm…uhh…_Dr. M!_ Get on the platform!" she instructed, and my mom and her colleagues rushed over there, huddled together with fear written all over their faces. "Guys, surround the platform. Make sure nothing gets past us!" she said and we all got into places.

The platform on the beach touched the shore, making us only able stand around the platform on land. I wanted to point out that it wasn't the best idea, but this wasn't _my_ flock to lead now; it was Angel's.

I was tense and poised for battle, my heart trying to escape my rib cage now. I was standing closest to the water, a few feet away from Gazzy. We haven't fought in such a long time; I was a little worried that we might be out of practice.

In the next second, another scream pierced the air, chilling me to the bone when I instantly recognized it as my mother's. I whipped around to see her hiding behind one of her friends, pointing a shaking finger at the _thing_ that was just about to step onto the platform.

I didn't know how to describe it. Whatever the threat was, it was wearing all black, sort of like a ninja, but not as cool. The only part that wasn't covered in black cloth was its eyes, making it hard to determine whether it was male or female, genetic freak or robot.

Adrenaline rushed through my veins at the sight of it, and with a shriek I ran towards it, fighting it off as best as I could. When I dropped its body into the ocean a few seconds later and turned around, the whole beach was suddenly filled with these wannabe ninjas, seemingly appearing out of thin air. I could estimate there to be at least a hundred of them, all clad in black and walking forward slowly towards the platform.

"_Sweet Jesus…"_ I heard Iggy breathe, just a second before Angel screamed, "_Attack!_" and we all jumped into action.

It was all a blur. I can't remember in full detail what happened but all I knew was that those 27 minutes seemed like ages. Fighting off the new threat, I learned that they were either genetic freaks or super humans when I'd punched one of them in the gut and it spat out blood onto my chest and neck. I know, _disgusting._

They were strong like us, but we had a bigger advantage because they were so predictable and we had a lot of experience, making us all able to take on 4 each at most.

Blood was spraying everywhere, the flock and I looked like Christmas. At one point, I fought with only my legs as one ninja held my torso and I struggled to pop his arm off. (Let's just call them ninjas, alright?) Another time, I'd asked Iggy to flip me 360 degrees over his shoulder, kicking both the ninja he was fighting off and the one behind him in the process, and we fought back to back from an onslaught of a dozen more ninjas coming towards us. (one word: BAMF.)

Eventually, I ended up fighting alone again a few feet away from the platform, fending off 3 ninjas at the same time. Once I incapacitated all of them, I looked around towards the flock, and my breath caught in my throat when my eyes landed on Fang.

He was currently fighting off 8 ninjas at the same time, barely able to protect his bruised torso and bloodied face. He was strong – one of the best fighters in the flock – but even Fang couldn't defeat them all, already wounded and bloody.

A loud shriek came from my right, and when I looked I saw Nudge and Angel working together to take down 6 of them. Angel was clutching her arm to her chest with pain written on her face, and Nudge was just kicking like crazy as she struggled to re-tie her string bikini top. I swear, I really would've started shitting bricks had we been in a less life-threatening situation. They needed help as well, but there was also Fang.

"_Max!_" My mother shouted from the platform, gathering closer with her colleagues to the edge and pointing towards the 3 ninjas that were heading towards them. The panic in her eyes made me start towards them, but my mind kept flashing back to my family around me, beaten and bloody and fighting to save their lives…

Panic coursed through me. I didn't know what to do; who to save. _My mother, my best friend or my sisters?_ They were all too important in my life for me to choose, and though deep inside my head I was thinking _Fang_, I don't think could live with myself if anyone else got fatally injured, possibly even died.

I closed my eyes tightly and fought down my fear and the urge to give up and collapse with fatigue. I was still filled with adrenaline, fidgety and ready to snap kick anyone who got too close, but at the same time I was just so _tired_, and my whole body was sore and bruised.

I was so filled with fear and anger that I didn't understand what happened next. I could faintly feel my temples pulsing with pain, but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered.

Blood was oozing out of wounds, and cuts were throbbing all over my body, but I felt numb, thoughts of pain at the back of my head. My mind was so clouded with raw rage that I walked forward without thinking about the dangers around me and stood a few feet away from about a dozen ninjas, only seeing red and nothing else.

Something just snapped within me, and it was like I was watching from another person's eyes as I lifted my arm out on front of me with my palm raised in the universal 'stop' sign, fingers spread out. Not understand what my body was doing, I then started to breathe raggedly, feeling my chest constrict from an unseen force, and all of a sudden – get this – the ninjas _flew_ _backwards_, crashing to the sand in various places, some getting badly injured.

I moved on to another group of ninjas and did the same thing, groaning as I put all my force into it, sending them scattered around the beach with some getting thrown into the ocean.

Screams of help and grunts of pain were all I heard around me as if from a distance. I looked around, not really taking in the number of ninjas still standing; everything was just so _hazy_. Unfocused. Wavering.

Angel screamed again, trying to fend off 3 ninjas that were coming her way.

Fang fell on his knees as 6 overpowered him.

Iggy called my name and asked me to help Gazzy.

And my mom and her friends were just shrieking as the ninjas got closer _and closer…_

The headache that I faintly noticed a while ago was now throbbing uncontrollably, multiple bursts of pain happening inside my skull like fireworks. I clenched my teeth to try to lessen the pain, but my jaw was sore from an uppercut. The pain in my chest was still there, similar to an elephant stepping on my rib cage, and I found it difficult to breathe.

_This was too much…_

I blindly fought now against a bunch of ninjas, surprisingly winning against them even with my shaky knees. I noticed my breathing getting shallower with each passing second, my punches and kicks getting weaker. My body was giving up on me.

And then, I couldn't take it anymore. The headache grew even stronger, spreading to my whole skull cap now and making the back of my eyes feel like they were on fire.

I screamed my throat raw, sinking to my knees on the coarse sand while clutching my head to keep it intact. This wasn't as bad as brain attacks in the past, but I was in the middle of a _fight_, and I couldn't believe I was just letting them down. I was letting my whole family down as I allowed the pain to consume me.

Tugging at my hair and continuing to scream, I felt wetness drip onto my lap. I was trying really hard not to cry, but it was those types of tears that flowed freely, warm and slow on my cheeks. I shrieked and I shrieked, only able to focus on the pain in my head and chest.

We were in the middle of a battle, my family fighting for their lives all around me, and yet here I was, curled up on the ground and screaming my head off, hoping unconsciousness would take over.

_I felt pathetic._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I guess since that was such a selfish thing to ask for, Fate didn't grant my wish. Instead, I suffered ever single second of my brain trying to rip itself to shreds in my skull and I just knelt there, clutching my head tightly in my palms.

One final scream that shook the earth resounded in the beach, and then I was spent for, every inhale and exhale labored as I fought within myself to make it _stop_.

Over my audible breathing, I could hear running, more breathing, and then I felt people touching my back.

"_Max!_ Max? What's wrong?" I knew it was Gazzy, but his voice sounded muffled by a pillow, like he was speaking from far away.

I couldn't answer him. I wanted to tell him I was fine, but I _obviously_ wasn't, and I couldn't go hiding like I usually did. Besides, I don't think I would be able to drag my body anywhere; this headache was much stronger than the ones in school, strong enough to leave me paralyzed.

Eventually, like all other headaches I've gone through, it started to ebb away. What's worse than the actual pain itself was the aftermath, when you had to face the people who saw you breakdown and live with the embarrassment of that memory. When the pain completely left my body, I stayed shaking on the ground, blinking back tears.

I could hear my family trying to comfort me despite the fact they didn't understand what happened, hear then telling me things were fine.

After a few more seconds of just staying there, I finally gathering the courage to lift my head. I looked up into my mom's brown eyes, filled with worry and sadness, and I felt like a jerk for making her worry about me. I was just hiccupping now, only realizing _then_ that I'd cried from the pain, and my face blushed scarlet.

Instinct instantly took over, brushing aside the fact that I was filled with embarrassment, and I first scanned my body for any fatal wounds. My body had a ton of bruises and scratches that would probably heal by tonight, but nothing that needed immediate medical attention.

Then I checked my family. Looking at the flock that stood over me, I saw that their wounds were like mine, nasty but healing. My mom and her friends looked traumatized for life and probably want nothing to do with us in the future, but they seemed untouched.

"Is everyone alright?" I asked to make sure. There have been instances where _someone_ was always stupid enough to act like a _gaping wound in their side_ was just a punch to the gut. Three guesses to who I'm talking about.

Everyone shot me weird looks and Iggy sighed, rolling his eyes. "Shit, Max. Are you that _insensitive?_"

I froze, my blood turning cold. W-what happened? Did somebody lose an arm?

"Can't you see that Nudge is _heart-broken?_" he continued and pointed at her, "_You just totally beat the crap out of her record for making my ears bleed!_"

My whole body relaxed and my shoulders sagged with relief. _My family was okay, they're all okay…_

I laughed despite myself, and when I wobbly stood up, I punched his shoulder. It wasn't the funniest thing that he's ever said, but I guess the shock numbed his douche capabilities. Who would've known?

I stumbled as took a step forward, and Iggy and Fang immediately rushed to either side of me. I wanted to shake it off, but I actually needed it, and I bit the inside of my cheeks in mortification.

Before I was able to raise my head, my mom suddenly block my view with a wash cloth that seemingly appeared out of nowhere, fussing over me as though I haven't gone through this a bajillion times.

"Mom, I'm fine…" I told her quietly, growing more embarrassed with each passing second. First the crying, then the stumbling, and now my _mom_. What's next Fate? Are you suddenly going to drop frickin' bleachers filled with people from the sky and let them watch me as I wallow in even more stomach-churning embarrassment?

"Honey, your nose is bleeding and it's not even broken." She started to dab on my upper lip, and when I looked down at my legs, I noticed that my thighs and the tip of my shorts were covered with drops of blood mixed with tears, now slipping down my knees.

"I think it's from the pressure, Dr. M." Iggy stated factually, and I whipped my head around to face him.

"What pressure?" I asked. _What were they talking about?_

"Max," Nudge said from beside me, looking hesitant before she nodded her head towards the beach. "I think you should look around you_._"

I finally raised my head and glanced around the beach, not understanding what I was looking at at first. I hadn't been able to check my surroundings because I was too busy worry about my family, but now that I looked around, I saw that every inch of the beach was covered with the ninjas, sprawled and twisted in disfigured angles, bleeding, broken and _dying_. From where I stood, they seem to have spread out like an explosion, like I was the cause of it.

"_Whoa._ What did this?" I asked, widening my eyes and not believing what I was seeing.

They were all quiet at first, looking at each other out of the corner of their eyes. Was there something they weren't telling me? What really happened?

"Uhh Max…" Gazzy started, biting his lip "You did this."

His words didn't register in my mind first. The thought traveled slowly, sluggishly in my brain. _Who did huh? What was he talking about? _And then I knew.

_I was the cause of it._

A strong pang suddenly hit me then and the heavy feeling in my chest felt worse, if it were possible. My eyes kept darting left and right, occasionally zeroing in on one of the bodies lying around; the vine of guilt slowly started constrict my heart every time I noticed that none of them were moving.

Not an inhale of breath, or a lift of a finger, or even a twitch.

I almost forgot why I was here in the first place. Why I was fighting for my life. Why only seconds ago, I was screaming my head off. I tried recalling the last few minutes, but I only saw flashes of memories, my family needing help, fighting, crying, screaming…

My eyes widened and I shoved Iggy and Fang away, gripping the roots of my hair to try to make sense of everything. Hysteria was taking over, and I could feel the first signs of hyperventilation as well.

"What? What're you talking about?" I was shaking my head, shaking the thoughts away and trying to make up a reasonable explanation. _This couldn't have been my fault._

"Max," Nudge tried placing an arm on my shoulder, but I shrugged it off, ignoring the look of hurt on her face. "We all saw it. I remember I was fighting, looking towards you for help, but you were standing too far away. I called your name, Iggy was calling your name, but you just…you just raised you hand and they…they _flew backwards_, Max. Like the air around you just burst outwards and they backed off. Max, I know it sounds crazy, but it's true."

"Nudge…Nudge, no. _Please_." I shook my head, trying to shake away the possibilities. If this was my fault, then it could only mean one thing…

"She's right, Max." Angel told me sadly, "And when you were screaming, when you fell to the ground, they all just got pushed back. Some of them flew really far, the ones standing closest to you. You know what this means, don't you?"

I didn't want to know what it meant, but already the idea appeared in my mind and everything just seemed to fit into place.

Like the time I was so desperate to get away from security when we didn't break into Itex Florida.

…_as I was running, the police or whoever was chasing us suddenly fell backwards and tumbled down the stairs when I yelled. Like some force_pushed_them…_

And the time I was so angry with Angel when she thought I couldn't handle a few security guards in Itex Georgia.

…t_hrough my peripheral view, I saw Angel stumble backwards a few steps and a look of shock crossed her face…_

And also the time we were flying and playing around, and Fang got angry with me.

…_just when I was 3 feet away from him in the air, with my arm extended towards his, Fang was suddenly hurdled backwards in mid-air, tumbling twice with incredible force…_

I couldn't believe I didn't see the signs. Subtle, but they were there. All along I had this, and I was just too stupid not to see.

This _was_ my fault; this whole beach incident was my fault.

I looked at everyone, and they stared right back gravely. They realized it before I did, but they were just too afraid to admit it out loud.

I had developed a new power.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Life goes on. No matter how great, or how horrible it is, it just does.

A member of your family dies? The seasons still change.

Cramming for 2 long tests, a project and 3 quizzes? Day still turns to night.

You discover you have a new power? I still go to school the next day.

_Crazy right? _

It was a Wednesday, one of my favorite days (because the lunch menu was actually something to look forward to), and yet my mind was consumed with thoughts about what happened yesterday, playing on repeat over and over as I still tried to find another reason for all of this.

I got a perfect score in my Math test (which was a miracle in itself), was able to get 2 lunch servings because the lunch lady was chipper today, won my team's softball game for us and I even started to talk to Mitzi again.

But I didn't fully appreciate and take in what was happening around me because my jumbled-up thoughts kept getting in the way, always at the back of my mind and never really allowing me to think of anything else.

You must be wondering why I _didn't_ want this power. Since you aren't me, you probably think it's cool or badass or some other reason just as stupid as that. But you don't actually _wield_ it. You're not the one who has to watch their actions and live with consequences if for _one second_ you accidentally lose control.

I wasn't a killer. I never intended to kill Ari that first time. I've never killed anyone on purpose. I only incapacitate or brutally injure anything that might threaten me or my family. As a genetic freak raised in a lab, I've come to appreciate life, because God knows how many times I've seen it slip away right in front of my eyes.

But now, now I was a _mass murderer_. I was going to have to live with the guilt for the rest of my one month-span life, or however much longer the man upstairs is willing to give me. The only thing that made me forgive myself was when Fang told me that if I hadn't done what I did, we would all be dead. And in a situation like that, I was going to choose my family always.

Thinking about this for the rest of the day, dissecting all the scenarios and instances that I didn't notice, I realized that my power was fueled by emotions.

And you all know how _fun-fucking-tastic_ I am with emotions.

The stronger I felt towards something, whether panic, or anger or even _joy_, the stronger the force of my power works. Yesterday, I was so desperate to save the flock and my mom, even if I knew I couldn't help everybody, and feeding on my hysteria, my power saved us all.

I was only lucky then.

What happens now, if I ever feel extremely pissed with Iggy at one of his innuendos? Or if the inevitable effects of PMS take its toll on me? What really happens then? What were the limits to this power and how would I be able to control it?

And what made this situation even more win was that I was _emotionally unstable._

Save the world? _Psh!_ No problem!

Find out you were dying? That's okay!

Find out your getting weaker for no apparent reason? It…It's fine.

Get into a fight with your family? Umm… I guess I can handle it.

Suddenly possess a destructive, uncontrollable power? You have _got_ to be fucking kidding me.

Maybe it's time I told the flock I was dying.

I had nothing to lose. They probably didn't have the guts to get mad at me. I had a right not to tell them in the past. They deserved the right to know by now.

And then my thoughts started to shift around, making me think of ideas on how to break the news. There were so much more things to worry about; my death wouldn't even be that big of a deal.

I spent all my time thinking about my death and my power.

_Ain't I such a ray of sunshine?_

I should've enjoyed this Wednesday, filled with so many things to celebrate about. Instead of being all gloom and doom, I should've laughed, and smiled and acted like Cam Ride.

Because little did I know that this was my last day of school at Greymoore high.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_**IMPORTANTE:**_ My next update is either on the 26th or the 27th. I've got 3 mid-terms, a paper, a project, an IP and defense, and my finals. Wish me luck, and again, I'm sorry!

I also might not reply to your reviews, but they're highly encouraged still. :D Can I **please get 15 reviews** this time? :)

**So who watched To Kill a Mockingbird** – the 1962 version with Gregory Peck? Did anyone get the incest vibes with Jem and Scout? I'm sorry, but they were just too cute and incredibly _adorable_. It's just too bad they hated each other during filming. :|

I feel so distracted and stressed right now so…

Peace out, stay real, review and all that legit shit.

.: Tiffany :.


	34. Ending School with a Bang

I'M A FREE BITCH BABY! XD

Its summer so I finally have the time to focus on this, and hopefully, finish it before school starts. ;) I also have other oneshot ideas so that's something to look forward too, but I might not always update on schedule because yes guys, I have a life.

Thank you very much to **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **AnikaandAj**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **Obsession Doesnt Cover It**, **DancingintheRayne**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **Eurwen de Vrill**, **JealousMindsThinkAlike** and **fireflies371** for reviewing the last chapter!

I also wanted to dedicate this chapter and the next to **SeaSaltChocolate **for being a great friend here on FF. :) Despite not reviewing the last chapter (yes, I am _so_ guilt-tripping you) she's really awesome. We just talk about random things, and sometimes I need the distraction away from reality so it's cool. She's also been a great reader from the time she's been fanficlover and she's really encouraged me to continue this. I couldn't decide whether you'd like this chapter better or the next one titled 'Confrontation or Make-out Session?' so they're both yours. :P

Enjoy chapter 33!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I was exhausted after PE. Like I said, I had won the softball game for my team, getting a homerun and striking out the first three players when we were playing field.

Subconsciously I could remember everything that happened that day; like I knew this was going to be my last day and every single detail stayed fresh and clear in my mind.

When dismissal came, Iggy and Fang walked close behind me as we made our way to the parking lot.

Putting aside all the tension between us, they were keeping a close eye on me now, taking shifts as though they were my bodyguards and almost never leaving my side.

We'd all even eaten lunch together just the three of us, our second time altogether this whole school year. We were taking extra precautionary measures because anything was possible now. We weren't safe anymore.

Every move I made, ever step I took, they were watching me.

It was insanely creepy.

It was embarrassing too, being stared at. We tried hard to fit in, but I don't think 2 guys watching me listening to the damn lecture was normal. Re-read my last sentence if you didn't see my problem.

Along with the stares came the whispered conversations and high-pitched giggled of many hormonal teenagers. (The giggles were from the girls by the way. In case you didn't know.)

Now, we had just come out of the locker rooms. My uniform was sloppily put on, but I was in a hurry to get home, my body feeling like it was 60 years old instead of 16.

Fang and Iggy seemed to have changed quickly too, their uniforms crumpled and disheveled as well. Like the good bodyguards that they were, they were keeping pace with me.

I guess we were pretty 'good-looking' people around here, because all around me students were taking about _us_. People were wondering why we were always together now, or trying to make guesses on why we were absent yesterday, commenting and gossiping on why we had a few scratches on our arms -

And wondering if Fang would let them bake cookies on his stomach.

I looked over my shoulder to peep at what Fang was doing, and I almost ran over a sentra (yes, _I_ was going to run over the car) from sheer astonishment.

Fang was walking a few feet behind me, his button down dress shirt half tucked in his pants. He was rolling up the sleeves of his polo with concentration, an adorable expression on his face with his head tilted slightly to the side.

I was tempted to walk right up to him, grab his un-done necktie and kiss him with all I've got just to show everyone that he was very well _taken_, but we were at school and things were complicated between us.

Cue tear slowly rolling down my cheek.

In the next second, I heard Iggy's booming laugh as he threw his blazer over his shoulder with swagger. I think he'd picked up on people's conversations then, because he was looking at Fang, and then he was looking at me, and then he went back to laughing.

I was tempted to walk right up to him, _and smack him into next Tuesday with my school-issued cardigan_, but the Iggy fangirls might just take me off the popularity list or something just as equally atrocious. (Oh, the horror.)

After what seemed like the longest catwalk in the world, we'd finally made it inside our van. Backpacks in the trunk and ready to start the car, I took a deep breath to relieve some of the stress bugging me. Seat belt strapped on with the key ready to start the car, it was then that I'd heard it. The oddest noise, faint but distinct, close yet muffled…

A ticking sound.

I was going to immediately pass it for the dashboard clock, but glancing at it, I saw it was digital and soundless. I turned around in my seat to look at Iggy, then at Fang, then down at my wrist, noticing that none of us were wearing watches.

My breath caught in my throat.

All three of us looked towards each other at the same time (well, Iggy looked in our direction), wide eyes telling one another that we'd heard it, and it wasn't just any clock or watch.

Instantly, our hands began searching everywhere, under seats, in between chairs and spaces and every possible compartment. With each passing second of not knowing where or what the ticking sound was, my heart started pounding uncontrollable, my sweaty palms shaking.

I would've instructed all of us to get the hell out of this car and run like heck, but I realized where we were and I knew we had no other choice. We weren't in the mountains or at some desert; we were in a _school parking lot_. There were kids scattered all over and I don't think they would take it too well if we shouted for them to abandon their cars and get out of school grounds.

Our best bet was to find it and turn it off before we'd all be turned into chicken strips. (_Get it?_ 'Cause ya know, we're part bird and if we explode- Oh, never mind.)

"Found it!" Iggy yelled after quite some time, and I literally hit my head on the ceiling from jumping in my seat. He had somehow (_blindly_) dismantled the compartment between the driver's and passenger's seat, and firmly attached to the floor of the car was a small black box with a tiny LCD screen, counting backwards from 00:31 seconds.

Thirty. One. Seconds.

"_Hurry Iggy!_" I gestured wildly and he started to try to remove the box. The sound of the bomb ticking seemed to resound in my head, getting louder and louder as the pressure seemed to close in on me.

I watched the back of Iggy's strawberry blonde head as he crouched over to remove it, and though it was only a few seconds, I was already tempted to kick him and try taking it out on my own.

_00:23 seconds._

"_Why are you taking so long?_" I growled, getting jittery in my seat.

"Max, it's _stuck_. I can't get the fucking box out and I can only turn it off from the inside!" Iggy shouted back at me, showing me his bloody fingers.

We were all so wound tight, the tense air in the car getting to us. Everything seemed louder now. Harsher. Faster. Like all we were doing was shouting and panicking.

"Fang, _help me!_" I told him and we started clawing at the box as well.

It was in that moment that I found out that the guys who planted the bomb in our car seemed to have vulcanized, melted, nailed, sewed, glued, stapled, taped and tied this baby down, complete with sealed kiss, making it impossible to remove.

The throbbing in my now bloody fingers was nothing compared to the continually rising panic inside of me. We only had one choice.

"_Get out._" I looked at the both of them, and they threw open their car doors and began yelling, telling everyone to get down.

I threw open my car door too and reached over to undo my seatbelt when the most win situation just _had_ to happen at _that_ moment.

My seat belt was stuck.

I kept pressing the eject button, but the latch wouldn't give. I looked back at the bomb's screen and the time left read 00:14 seconds.

"_You've got to be kidding me!_" I thrashed in my seat, clawing at the straps like a maniac.

No, this wasn't going to happen to me. I wasn't going to allow myself to die from a flippin' _bomb explosion_.

_00:10 seconds._

"_ARGH!_" I shrieked, resorting to trying to slip underneath the two straps. I slumped in my seat and began inching my way out, knowing I looked ridiculous in my pathetic attempt at 'metamorphosis.'

_00:06 seconds._

I righted myself with a huff and began yanking at the straps again.

Blooming butterfly method: _So_ not working. My body was too long to pull out from under the straps.

There were probably other ways to get out but at that moment my mind went blank. I only had seconds before death; there was no time to analyze and think things through.

_00:04 seconds._

"_SHIT!_" I screamed in the next second as Fang suddenly appeared beside me. He brought out his switch blade from his pocket, and with one smooth motion, flicked it open and sliced both of the straps in a millisecond. The blade slightly grazed the side of my leg, making me flinch, but that didn't matter.

We had to run.

He grabbed my hand and started sprinting, never stopping in his stride even as I stumbled.

_3…_

Like in every action movie, times seemed to slow down just then. (_WTF, right?_ A while ago time seemed to be going so fast, and now time was going at a snail's pace, probably needing crutches from all that running a while ago. Okay, that was a lame metaphor. Or is it a personification?)

_2…_

We probably looked dramatic if you ask me, with our hair being blown back from the fierce expressions on our faces; I would've laughed then if we weren't seconds away from dying.

_1…_

I had only taken my sixth step when I felt myself falling, felt my knees and forearms scrap harshly against the ground as it caught the worst of my fall. My head slammed against the concrete as well, and my vision blurred, seeing Fang's body lying beside mine but not really know what I was staring at.

In reality, you don't exactly hear the explosion of a bomb, especially if you're close to it. It's just kind of an eerie silence that makes your ears feel like they've been stabbed with knives, a silence that makes it seem like the whole world shut down for a moment because it's just that soundless.

Once I regained my sense of hearing, the shouts came, as well as the car alarms and the panting and running of people trying to get away.

It took me a while to clear my vision, making my head swim as I blinked multiple times; instinct took over after a few seconds, and I quickly got to my feet. I stood up the same time Fang did, ignoring the message of pain as I instead focused on my comrades.

Fang had a few cuts to add to his collection of wounds, and a nasty gash on his knee. I saw him limp as he stood up, and I figured that he accidentally landed on it when we fell.

A few meters diagonal from us was Iggy. He looked completely unharmed if not a little disheveled. He was able to duck behind a car at the last second, and though I was jealous of the lucky bastard for not having to get a single bruise on him, I was relieved he was okay.

"Are you alright, Max?" Fang held my shoulders and shook me, snapping me out of my reverie to look at him. I wanted to lean into him, wanted his arms to wrap around my body comfortingly so that I felt safe and reassured, but there were other things more important than my well-being.

It took me a second to process what he had said before I quickly nodded and went back to surveying the area, taking in the parked cars with open doors, the backpacks and purses abandoned, and the signs of no dead bodies lying around.

I sighed a huge breath I didn't know I was holding. No one was hurt.

I called Iggy to come over so that I could double check for wounds, and he started to jog over to where Fang and I stood. Halfway towards us though, he stopped in his tracks.

"Iggy, what're you-"

"Max, behind _you-_" But he never got to finish his sentence because the sound of a gunshot overlapped his words and suddenly Iggy was falling to the ground, dark red blossoming in the middle of his chest.

I took in his sightless cloudy eyes as they widen. Saw him exhale with shock. Watched him fall to the ground with his head titled back as if in slow motion.

I was an idiot to think things were over.

A bomb was just too simple; there was always a catch, and I was stupid not to think of every possibility. Especially with us bird-kids, things were never this easy.

I should've listen better to my surroundings instead of taking my sweet time surveying the place. We should've flown home the moment we stood up, instead of checking for other injured people, because these people were more likely to get _more _injured the longer we stayed here.

I screamed desperately for Iggy and started towards him, simultaneously as I heard a car drive right by me. I turned around a second too late and the next thing I knew, an arm was wrapping around my waist and was trying to haul me in the sliding door of the van.

I fought back, of course (Like you'd expect me to scream like a damsel in distress the whole time. _Psh!_). The arm that was trying to carry me in the van was strong, made of muscle and steel, but I dragged my bloody nails deep into the flesh and wrung it continuously, all the while dragging my feet on the ground.

Since the guy (let's just say he's a guy, since his arm was hairy) only grabbed me by the waist, and I resisted the momentum of his actions, my legs, specifically knees down, were scrapping on the asphalt.

And I was in a skirt.

And the flesh around my shins was still healing from yesterday.

And the car was going at around sixty, maybe seventy miles per hour.

_I'm a lucky girl._

At that point I didn't feel any pain, just the panic and instinct to get away. I was groaning and shrieking, thrashing in the captor's hold.

I know I sounded weak and wimpy, unable to fight back. I was _Maximum Ride_, and yet this lone thug was enough to leave me helpless. I would've used my legs to get a good kick in, but they were currently busy smearing my blood on the pavement, and using just my hands with no maneuverability was not enough to fend this guy off.

I didn't understand how this dude was so strong. He looked human, like any ordinary guy with his light hazel eyes and dark brown hair, and yet he was squeezing the life out of me, possibly including my delicious lunch as well.

By this time I was at the sliding door's frame, with one final tug that would pull me in. Since I was shaking my head in agitation, my bangs and hair getting in my eyes, I could only see flashes of the things around me.

I saw another guy inside the car; he was holding a gun, crouched as he continually fired out the same side of the door. My Panic-o-meter shot up to 120% at the though of either Iggy or Fang being shot multiply times, blood gushing on the pavement from all the wounds…

I shook again, holding the door frame so the captor couldn't pull me in. I faced outwards towards the parking lot, searching for Fang as I kicked and screamed.

Where was he throughout all of this? Was he already shot at? Dying as he gasped for air on the ground by Iggy? Was he running away, or did he go fly off to escape?

I didn't know whether or not to be relieved or angry if that was the case.

A loud grunt then a sickening crack resounded in the air. I turned around in my captor's hold to see Fang inside the car now, standing over the shooter.

Speak of the bird-kid devil.

Even from his stance I could feel murder emanating from him, his back in a tense crouch when he turned around to face me. I caught my breath when I looked into his obsidian eyes, filled with so much raw anger I almost let go of the door frame out of shock. This was the angriest I've seen him in a long while, and I'd have to admit I was slightly frightened too.

My captor turned around as well, and in that single second of distraction, I took that opportunity to twist around and try to knock him unconscious with that one swift move Jeb taught me when I was 11.

Since I was just _that_ lucky, Fang chose that moment to _also_ attack my captor, making said captor take a few steps back and bump into me.

And the next thing I knew, I was falling (for the second time that day for all of you guys keeping a tally), seeing the tauntingly perfect blue cloud-filled sky for a few seconds. I only heard Fang's voice as he grunted, then the sounds of something heavy scrapping against the asphalt, something breaking, then coughing.

I was anticipating my fall as well, tensing my muscles for the inevitable gong of pain that would shake all the bones in my body. The familiar pang that would leave me gasping for air as I lay on the ground, paralyzed. I've fallen a lot of times, from a lot of places, in a lot of situations. I was used to this kind of treatment.

But no. This time was special for some reason, because I had already landed on the ground on my shoulder blades when I felt fingers wrap around my ankle, a tight vice-like grip similar to the one around my waist just a few seconds ago.

I think you know where I'm going with this.

'_I was going to hell,'_ was the only thought in my head the moment it started. Because surely only people who were going to hell deserved this kind of pain, and experienced it right before they got dragged down there.

_Dragged._ That word was too weak to what I felt was really happening to me.

At sixty miles per hour, I was spreading the road with the flesh of my back and wings, feeling like all the skin there was being yanked off grotesquely and inhumanely.

My eyes were closed as I cried. I wasn't even embarrassed to cry at that moment because I figured I had the license to bawl like a baby.

The process was so fast yet so slow, ever second of the back of my head, my shoulder blades, the small of my back, my wings and my butt being dragged on the rocky floor felt like a hundred years. And yet I knew it was fast because I couldn't have felt that much pain if we were going slowly.

I was trying to lift my torso up to reduce the pain, trying to reach up to the captor with my hands to rip his fucking head off, but I was in too much pain now, just screaming and feeling the tears slip down the sides of my face.

My whole back was warm, burning and pulsing with pain. My arms, which were now uselessly dragging along the parking lot floor as well, were being scrapped to the bone, and I could practically feel all the blood in my body seeping out of me.

My captor wasn't just dragging me like a rag doll on the ground for no reason; he was still trying to pull me in. The more he tugged to try to haul me in though, the more pain spread throughout my whole body, making the leg he wasn't holding twist painfully as it limply dragged on too.

Both my options majorly sucked. I'd either comply with the jerk trying to kill me, which would result in my capture, or I'd try and get loose from his hold, which might just prolong my misery in painting the school property in scarlet.

I opted for the latter; there was no way in hell I would succumb to the School, or Itex, or whoever the heck was trying to get me.

I knew I was trying my best. I fought and I fought as best as I could, though I felt myself losing consciousness at one point, honestly happy that it was going to be over soon. It was that kind of feeling you get when you're sleeping, when you could still hear the things around you, stuck between reality and fantasy.

I knew I should have tried harder, but I was just in so much pain, incomprehensibly unbearable that any other normal human would've instantly die after just a few seconds. Sadly, I wasn't human, and I had to live through all of the suffering.

I was going under, the last thing I was hearing was screaming, when I felt my ankle drop and I jolted awake.

I hated consciousness with a passion at that moment.

An animalistic cry escaped my lips, a sound I didn't know I was capable of making, and I just kept shrieking from all the pain on my back. The tears were blurring my vision, overflowing in my eyes and streaming down he sides of my face. I tried rolling on my side to see if I could take away some of the pain, but I was paralyzed, incapable of even lifting a finger. It was also hard for me to breathe, gasping like a fish out of water from my broken ribs and the damage in my back.*

I was just lying there, crying and lying in a pool of my own thick and sticky blood as the gashes on my back leaked an ocean of crimson.

I've been burnt, electrocuted, stabbed, cut and shot among others, but never have I thought of being flayed alive. I guess now I have something new to put into my scrapbooks.

From a distance, I heard running and panting, then I could feel someone leaning over me. I opened my eyes a slit to see no one other than Fang crouching beside me, the world's guilt, anger and sadness written in his eyes. It was all in his eyes.

He was badly hurt too, I could see. A back eye was starting to form and different sizes of cuts were spread across his face, blood dripping down his jaw. I knew there were more to his injuries as I saw through his façade of being just hunky dory, but the rest of his emotions were out in the open, and they were displayed because of me.

"Fang…" I croaked, wincing at the weak hoarseness of my voice and the pain in my ribs. I tried to get up but he pushed me down gently, telling me not to move. He griped my hand and squeezed it, panting from all the fighting and running he did.

"Thanks." I told him simply, knowing it was he who had fought off my captor until the moment the bastard let go.

"Oh God, Max…I-_I don't-_" And he didn't finish his sentence because I knew he didn't know what to do from here. _I_ didn't know what to do from here and I knew everything. I could always think of a solution to a problem, an answer to even the tightest situations. But right now, things seemed a little hopeless.

I knew there was always something. Never in my life have I thought that there was no hope or way out.

But Iggy had just been shot, bleeding on the ground just a few feet away from me. I had just been dragged on the pavement, the pain from all the ripped skin worse than any other wounds I've ever had. And Fang, he was injured too and left with the responsibility of taking care of Iggy and me.

If there was an answer, I'm all ears.

Suddenly, I could feel myself slipping again, drifting off into unconsciousness. I could feel myself slowly letting go, so I squeezed his hand as tight as I could so that he could pay attention.

"Fang," I said with all the strength I could muster left in me, "Check on Iggy. Get the kids home safely. _Do it now._" I instructed him, my mind thinking of the best solution and all the possibilities; how the guys who'd tried to capture me would probably try and get the other kids as well. And if they knew where we studied, then they must know where the others were too.

"_Max-_"

"I said _get the kids_, before I backhand you so hard, your great grandchildren are going to feel it." I tried to sound threatening, but it was a pathetic attempt.

He stared into my eyes for a few seconds, the internal conflict swirling in them, before he kissed my hand and abruptly stood up to jog over to where Iggy was lying.

And I laid there watching his feet walk away, feeling the warm and sticky blood all around me before I was swallowed up in darkness.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Really dark chapter, aye?

*I was once punched in the back so I know how it feels. I started hyperventilating and crying. Before you laugh at me, I was 9 year old, okay?

OH! I know it's not really important, but in case any of you ask me which chapters those 'past experiences' proved Max getting her new force field power and all it was chapters 3, 13 and 22 respectively. You can go check them out and see what I was talking about in the last chapter when she was having those 'flashbacks'.

**Next update is next week** like always, and can I get **13 reviews** this time pretty please? This chapter was okay, right? :)

Lastly, I thought of an idea to spice up reviewing. :D Instead of always just saying things like, "Update soon, keep up the good work, great chapter…"Let's play the Get to Know You game!

I'm going to ask a question (nothing too creepy of course, I'm not a freak), answer it, and you can also answer it in a review. :) Sound good?

Okay, question of the chapter: What's your signature accessory?

I always wear a scapular, my earrings, my glow in the dark silly band and my 'Like A Boss' baller but I'd have to say…my bra strap headband. :D As in, I really use some of my old bra straps and attach the hooks and use it as a headband.

**What's your signature accessory? **

So yeah, please review and answer!

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	35. Bad Guy Boyfriend

What is up, my friends? :)

Okay, you gaiz probably don't think we're friends anymore since I updated 2 weeks after my initial 'promise', but I've got my reasons. I'll state them in the bottom.

Mucho thanks to **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **fireflies371**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **My Silver Wings18**, **AnikaandAj**, **bookworm842**, **DancingintheRayne**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **Eurwen de Vrill**, **dancingonmytoes13**, **SharpestSatire** and **SeaSaltChocolate **for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are lovely, and I probably don't deserve you all. Your answers to my question were really interesting, so imma gonna keep that up; and please log in if you want me to reply to you! :) No offense, but I don't have the time to look you up and PM you a reply. :|

This chapter is still dedicated to my good friend **SeaSaltChocolate**. And you might as well thank my other good friend **SharpestSatire** for encouraging me to write faster. If it wasn't for her, I'd probably update next week. :P

Enjoy chapter 35!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The only good thing in my life was the fact that my family was safe, and that I was alive. It wasn't a lot to celebrate about, but with my kind of life you appreciate the little things.

Right now, six days later, I was back in the safe house, doing what I usually do at this time of day: eat a motherload of food.

Going down the stairs, I almost laughed to myself like a psycho, but then I thought better of it for the sake of my healing ribs.

I couldn't believe here I was now, doing something so mundane like _getting a snack in the kitchen_, when just about a week ago I was almost as good as dead.

Let's all backtrack to March 3: the day the van exploded, Iggy got shot, and I lost about all my flesh to the school parking lot.

Fang told me what happened; after I had passed out, he went to Iggy to see if he was still alive. Iggy seemed to have used up his lifetime's worth of luck, as the bullet lodged into one of his stomach muscles (I bet all you Iggy fangirls are crying that one of his perfectly-toned abs are ruined, huh?), and the only really serious thing about his situation was the loss of blood. The doctor said that if the shooter was any closer, and the bullet actually went into his body, he would've died a slow death during the time Fang was fighting off my captor.

After that, Fang called the kids. They made Ella stay in school, hoping beyond hope that whoever attacked us didn't know about my sister, and Angel, Nudge and Gazzy flew to where we were.

After much panicking and exclaiming from the kids, Fang carried me piggyback style as the kids supported Iggy (he pulled out the bullet, got up, and insisted that he was capable of flying), and we flew to the hospital where one of mom's friends, Dr. Gabby Madigan, worked.

You can all breathe easy, guys. Dr. Madigan, with the help of Jeb *gag*, studied our body composition and all that scientific jargon, volunteering to be our doctor in case of emergencies, alongside my mom and Jeb.

None of them wanted to bring us to the hospital, but they knew that my wounds were beyond my mom's expertise to patch up something this serious with just a medical kit, so they swallowed down their fears and went with it. And I guess, tried to hold their breath for as long as possible.

Fang was also nice enough to tell me everything (bomb explosion, yadda yadda) that happened starting from the time we were dismissed, because apparently I got a slight concussion that time I hit my head on the pavement, resulting in temporary amnesia.

I was out for two days, faintly remembering the nurses sedating me over and over whenever I'd wake up. I even remember once getting up off the bed and punching one of them, going into panic mode, and then they sedated me again, and I think that nurse transferred hospitals. Whoops.

The doctors eventually explained to me that I had second and third degree burns all over my back, as well as a ton of wounds that needed stitching. They were planning on surgically adding skin to my back, but the flock quickly intervened that it would take licensed genetic scientists to do it properly without killing me, and that it would heal in a couple of days.

_Thank God_, 'cause I don't want some random person's flesh, or the flesh of anyone in the flock, or even _my own_ flesh from somewhere around my body to be sewn onto my back. That was _beyond_ nasty, and I've had enough grafting done to me to last me 12 lifetimes thank you very much.

My injuries were fatal, they said. The only thing that saved me was the fact that I tucked my head and was being dragged on my wings, because they were folded so tightly against my spine that it cushioned it, and took the worst of the damage. If my spine had been fractured in even the tiniest way, I would've been dead instantly.

It was my wings that were nearly impossible to look at. A lot of the feathers got torn out, leaving bloody gashes and huge cuts everywhere. Two bones got broken, and the flesh before the muscle was rubbed thin to the subcutaneous layer.

The last time my wings got injured was when I was shot, and I wasn't allowed to fly for about a week. This time, I wasn't allowed to fly for a month. And this is in flock standards.

It was _that_ bad.

For the most part, the flock was in shock about the whole scenario, finding it hard to believe that danger had finally caught up to us. My mom and Ella, on the other hand, went nuts. Their worry for both me and Iggy was overwhelming, and they kept fussing and spazzing all over the place.

Iggy and I were both released on the fourth day. We both healed really quickly (as in, faster than even _our_ standards, which is saying something) and the doctors just said to come back every two days for check-up.

Right now, the scratches on my arms and legs were reduced to scabs and scars. I was still wrapped in bandages and gauze around my wings and my torso area like a mummy, making it slightly difficult for me to breathe. I could lean back on walls and chairs now, only wincing by a tiny bit, and I could lie on my back for a few minutes too.

It was amazing how quickly we all healed, able to do ordinary activities and go on with life when I was so close to the brink of death.

I was still sore all over, but I was getting better, and at least my family and I weren't in any immediate danger.

Things were fine for now.

If I were an ordinary 16-year old girl, I would've probably stayed in the hospital for 3 weeks and complained about the pain and how my back would look afterwards. Actually, if I were an ordinary human being, I would've died right then on the parking lot pavement. But our lives were quickly mirroring the past and I had to act strong about this. I couldn't mope around while the flock looked up to me. I couldn't dwell on this forever.

We had to move on. I had to count my blessings, cross my fingers and heal quickly before disaster struck again. End of story.

Back to the present, I was already walking down the hallway that led to the kitchen, when I suddenly felt the need to sniffle, and I immediately knew exactly what was about to happen.

I'm not going to go into the details about overreacting like I did the first time it happened, because I was already used to it. The second I knew what it was, I immediately ran to the upcoming door, which was conveniently a bathroom.

I leaned over the marble sink as I watched the blood drip, which is actually the best thing you could do when you get a nosebleed. Seconds past and I was spacing off as the drops of blood spread like blossoms on impact. About fifteen minutes later, it finally stopped and I sighed in exasperation.

That's fifteen minutes of my short-spanned life that I'll never get back.

You can totally just imagine me rolling my eyes at the whole situation; I was getting tired of always having to run and watch and wait for these little episodes to finish.

I washed the blood down and exited the bathroom as normally as I could to avoid suspicion, my face in its usual impassive expression, when I noticed just how quiet and empty the house felt.

At first, I tried to wave it off as nothing. My family could've been anywhere; there were so many rooms to this house, I probably only knew a third of it.

But then I quickly got to thinking of our current situation. How we'd been ambushed in California, how Iggy and I were so close to dying a week ago…

I looked around me with my palms pressed against the wall, whipping my head left and right and starting to feel the panic build up in my chest.

We were eleven that lived in this house, including the dogs and Total, but somehow I felt so alone now. Even in this ginormous house, I always felt their presence around me, whether it be Angel humming, or the sound of Akila's nails clacking on the marble, they were here.

Now, it was too noiseless. Like they were gone, like they all left.

…or maybe they were _captured._

I sucked in a breath and started running.

As I passed by the plethora of rooms, I noticed how everything was still exactly how it was normally positioned, with the furniture still in place and picture frames still intact. There were no signs of a struggle, but with our past records of being captured in many different ways there didn't have to be. I pumped my legs harder, the adrenaline surging through me.

My heart felt like it was about to leap to my throat and I started to sweat, trying to ignore the pain on my back from running. My mind went on over-drive like it usually did in the past, and I could bet you that I had that crazed look in my eyes.

I quickly made my way to the entertainment room where the flock usually hung out, only to find that the room was empty. It was in its usual disarray, with the couch cushions strewn about, the blankets lying limp and unfolded on the floor, and the remote probably missing, but it didn't look like the flock had been here for quite a while.

"_Shit!_" I cursed under my breath, feeling warm all over, and was about to turn around and rush upstairs when someone spoke out of nowhere and practically made me jump out of my skin.

"Max," the voice said, "You know the doctors said not to do anything strenuous."

When I turned around in place, I saw Fang sprawled out on one of the couches, just lying down there with his arms crossed behind his head.

I tried not to ogle at his lean frame, with his toned arms evident through the dark grey long sleeves of his shirt. He wasn't buff like those overly-steroid-taking body builders, but you could tell by his broad chest, perfectly sculpted abs, and that guarded, dark look in his eyes that he was fighter, that he was dangerous.

To cover up that fact that I was very well staring at him, I let out a huge sigh of relief and leaned on the door frame, only to wince and get back up. _Stupid back…_

"For the love of all that holy, _could you not go all chameleon on me like that!_" I said, irked. I rolled my eyes and ran a hand through my hair to try to cover the fact that I also went all panic-mode for nothing. How _embarrassing…_

"I'm _so_ sorry, Max. I'll check the manual to my ability so that I'll learn when _not_ to go invisible next time." He said sarcastically with a slight smirk, knowing that I knew he couldn't control it. I decided to ignore that comment.

"Where is everyone else?" I asked a little breathlessly, still regulating my breathing from all that running.

"They went back to the hospital. You were supposed to go with them for a check-up, but they thought you were sleeping. They didn't want to disturb you." He said, starting to sit up.

"Oh…okay." I said quietly, kind of awkwardly, and with a curt nod I began to turn around to head back to my room. I had lost my appetite after my little episode in the bathroom (you know what I mean), and I suddenly felt very old and tired in that moment. I just wanted to laze around, maybe read a book. There was nothing to do anyway, since I didn't go to school anymore. No more last-minute studying, no more homework to cram for.

"Max, _wait._" Fang called me again, and something in his voice suddenly made my blood run cold. Even without looking at him, I could hear the seriousness and determination, the familiar tone his voice got whenever he was about to go into battle. _Crap._

I felt my whole body tense, but I shook it off; trying to look as casual as I could, I spun around on my heel and faced him, raising an eyebrow.

"_What?_"

I've been dreading this for a long time. I knew what his next words were going to be and yet there was still a part of me that hoped I'd be wrong. I met his dark, depthless eyes with my own, staring back with defiance and daring him to start something he'll regret.

I couldn't deal with this right now. There were so many things going on in my life, and I'd just rather sit in my room and pretend everything was fine. I did _not_ need Fang to remind me otherwise. I needed to sort everything out slowly, and I know it sounds wrong, but Fang wasn't my priority at the moment; I think my death and new-found ability deserved to be at the top of my list.

He walked towards me slowly and I stood my ground, eyeing him carefully. We both knew that though I may have been healing, I was still capable of unleashing a can of whoop-ass on him. He better watch his actions, bub.

Once he was standing a few feet away from me, he closed his eyes for a second, looking as though it was physically hurting him to say his next words, and when his midnight eyes locked back on mine, he whispered.

"We need to talk."

_BAM - _it was out in the open.

I tried to suppress the panic within me, forcing my calm composure to stay. Not knowing how else to respond to that, a sarcastic remark made its way up my throat and I prayed that this could shake him off.

I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him a saccharine smile, narrowing my eyes by a tiny bit. "_Really?_ Because I don't feel inclined to talk to you." I said icily.

I didn't mean any of those words, nor the tone of my voice, but I was hoping that could get him away from me. I hated myself for doing this, but if making him hate me was what it took to leave me alone, then so be it.

I began to turn around and head back to my room when I suddenly felt strong, callous fingers wrap around my left arm. I quickly whipped around and glared death at him, my heart beat accelerating from his touch and our proximity.

"Max, don't be stubborn." His eyes flashed darkly and his voice was turning deep and threatening, but I was tired of being scared of him. It was time I acted like myself for a change.

"You can't tell me what to do, now let go of me." I growled back, yanking on my arm. I saw faint surprise flash quickly through his eyes, and was that a little bit of _hurt?_

"We're going to have to talk about this sooner or later."

"You have five seconds to let go of my arm before I castrate you." I deadpanned.

His grip tightened for a second before he let go. I wanted to smirk at him for actually listening to me the moment I threatened his manhood, but the air was tense and he was clearly in serious mode.

I didn't run. Running would signify that I was afraid, and that was the last thing Fang needed to know. I was going to walk away from him with my head held high, victory in mind. (Was this even a battle of sorts?)

I hadn't even turned around when Fang's voice reverberated throughout the rooms and halls, sounding so loud and harsh and so unlike him.

"Then _when_, Max? When are we going to talk and solve things as we should've done days ago? When are you going to give me the chance to explain myself? _When_ are you going to _forgive me?_" His voice rose towards the end, and I could hear the slight desperation in it. And trust me, Fang was _never_ desperate for _anything._

I could feel the emotions in his words. Fang's voice never held so much meaning before – even when he was comforting me or telling me how much I meant to him. Since we rarely fought this way, where we wouldn't talk things over and forgive each other immediately, I could feel the hurt he was feeling.

We had finally found it easy to express our feelings without saying 'I love you' or talking about our emotions, but this was a whole other feeling that neither of us could handle it for so long.

Forgiving him was easier said than done. I may be overreacting, or Fang may have been right for betraying me, but I just couldn't bring myself to forgive so easily.

I've been hurt and betrayed so many times in my life, I've promised myself that it would never happen again. Not anymore. I built up a wall of protection for my emotions, and Fang was the _last_ person I thought who would destroy it.

I couldn't lose Fang, but what he did to me was unforgivable. He knew exactly how I felt about being the leader of the flock, he _knew_ how important it was to me. I didn't understand how he could say the words that tore me apart, how his agreement to the flock's decision could hurt me the most.

Standing on front of him now, not only did my mind register the longing I felt, but also the fear in me at the slicing volume of his voice, and his whole stance over me.

His whole demeanor was scaring me – his calculating, determined dark eyes boring into mine, his evident tense muscles, his fists clenching and unclenching at his sides, and his tall frame compared to mine. Fang was really tall; even to my height of 5'9, he made me feel like a midget.

And at that moment, I saw him in a new light. Because this was not the man I fell in love with. This was someone who I barely knew, who was a complete stranger that held not a single ounce of my trust. I felt like we were starting over, and all I knew about him were the obvious traits and physical characteristics. I may have known his favorite ice cream flavor, or his music and book preferences like the back of my hand, but I was only seeing his rigid stance and the harsh expression on his face.

Not to mention knowing that he was capable of killing someone with his sleight hands.

It was like I couldn't decide whether to run into his arms or run away from him.

I really can't say what I was afraid of. If I didn't know Fang, I'd immediately stereotype him for a (very hot) murderer or something. I wasn't in the right mind, so him hurting me seemed possible.

Or maybe if it was the thought of being confronted. I didn't like talking about my feelings, and I especially didn't want to know the truth of his actions. I understand knowing the truth was always best, but I was scared that I wouldn't like it. It could very well break what was 'me and Fang', and I'd actually much rather keep the scraps of what we have intact, no matter how broken we were.

In the next second, I felt the familiar warmth of adrenaline coursing through me yet again, making my heart beat painfully against my rib cage.

_What the-?_

There was no explanation as to why I felt this way, as my mind suddenly registered that Fang was a _threat_ in that moment. I could feel the fear taking over, my mind and body making the decision. I didn't know what came over me, but my mind was on over-drive; I couldn't think straight.

Subconsciously, I was taking in the fact that we were alone in the house, that I knew he wasn't going to let me get away, that he was dangerous, that I was injured, and that I had nowhere to go.

_Aww shit._

I started breathing deeply, the panic spreading throughout my body. Fang clearly noticed this and reached out to comfort me, but I shrank away from him.

"Are you okay?"

"_I…_" I stuttered, opening and closing my mouth like an idiot.

His voice was worried, his tone was sincere, and yet all that was going through my mind was that he was going to get me. _He wasn't going to let me get away._

"Max…" He started to reach for me again, but his hand seemed too stiff and menacing for reassurance. It started to look almost _claw-like_ in spite of his real intentions.

I could feel the fear multiplied ten-fold, and going along with it, I did what first came to mind. I quickly turned around and ran away as fast I could.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**To justify myself, here are my reasons:**

Uno – I just got out of school. I dunno if it's the thrill of doing something I shouldn't be doing, but I write more whenever I get home from school because of all the good ideas I get during class.

Dos – I am busy. I have a life. And I'm enjoying it a lot too, so switching from my all-smiles persona to something so angsty was really hard for me. I _can't_ do angst. (But SharpestSatire can!) I like to put myself in the character's perspective, as well as put a lot of descriptions and emotions, that my personal feelings were conflicting with my writing. It sucked.

Tres – I had everything all planned out, but just writing everything down actually ended up becoming 14 and a half pages on my doc file. I have a problem with transitioning, going from sarcastic and headstrong to panic to crazy mode to fear and fragility to sexy time and that was hecka difficult, let me tell you.

Quatro – I wanted to put all 14 and half pages into this chapter, but then only decided to divide it after I was done typing it out. *SPOILER* I majorly _suck_ at smut, so it was difficult for me to write. And I assure you, it's still going to suck.

Cinco – Since I was having such a difficult time writing, I kept reading the same drafts over and over because something felt wrong about it and it was driving me up the wall. I had to take breaks for periods of time just to refresh my brain for the scene. It's harder than you think.

**SO YEAH**. Please forgive me. It's okay if I'm not forgiven, but don't kill me just yet, because I already have **next chapter** ready to be posted **next week**. Fo' sho.

**Just so ya'll know**, I _didn't want to focus too much on her and Iggy healing_. I could've gone on and on about their stay in the hospital, and Max and Iggy being stubborn and all, but that would be boring and I'd have difficulty writing that. I _needed_ the above scene to happen, so I couldn't have Fang confront her in her hospital bed. (And she wouldn't allow that to go down anyway; she probably would've ripped off her IV and sprinted barefoot out of the hospital, just sayin'…) It is _part of the plot_, people.

Also, I _hope you understand_ what happened towards the end. Just tell me what you don't get it and I can explain. :)

There's still something wrong with this chapter as I edit it, but I gave up on trying to perfect it. :\ I think it's the lack of descriptions? Or maybe how fast this all was, but it was a pain to write it all out and I didn't know how else to slow it down. **Sorry.**

I hope I didn't lose any of you guys. :( Can I please get **13 reviews** for this chapter? Like, **pretty please?**

Now it's taym for…Question of the chapter: How tall are you? :D

To be pair, I'm 5 feet, 4 inches tall. :P That's pretty tall for me considering Filipinos are generally short people, and I researched that the average height of girls my age are 5'3.

**So how tall are you?**

**Review so I know you still care! :)**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	36. White Walls and Through the Halls

Oh look! I'm actually on time! :)

Happy Easter guys! Many thanks to **JealousMindsThinkAlike**, **fireflies371**, **Birdwatched**, **dancingonmytoes13**, **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **maximumpotter101**, **SeaSaltChocolate** and **SharpestSatire** for reviewing last chapter!

Special thanks to **volleychik12** for being my 250th reviewer! Woohoo!

I'm so iffy about this chapter… But it's not going to happen anymore from here on out anyways. :P This chapter is strictly **rater T**. Enjoy!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

My fight or flight instincts kicked in; luckily I had a drop of sanity left in me to process that I couldn't fight off my best friend (or what was left of him), so I instead resorted to running away.

So much for walking away in victory.

In the back of my mind, I knew Fang would never hurt me. Never in a million years would he dream to do the things the Erasers and whitecoats did to us, but in my eyes, he was still out to get me. My eyes looked past reason and told me to just keep running away.

I could hear him, calling out to me, trying to get me to stop, telling me I was hurting myself. But I heard different things – the cackling of Erasers, taunting laughter, the whitecoats urging us to run.

I was really losing it.

When I reached the staircase, I took it three at a time. And when I realized I wasn't going fast enough, I took off on the ninth step, snapping out my broken wings and soaring to the second floor landing.

It took all I had to bite back my cry of pain as the healing muscles and tissues strained themselves, the bones popping and cracking as I flapped. It was actually like getting hurt the first time, maybe even worst, but I shrugged it off. It only took two downstrokes to get to the landing, and I stumbled oh so gracefully onto my side on the floor.

More fire burst on the tender flesh I was leaning on, but that didn't matter. I could hear him running in the hallway downstairs, getting closer with each wasted second as I stayed crumpled on the ground.

I hissed at the throbbing but got to my feet, staring down the three hallways that twisted and snaked the second floor. Without stopping to think, I tore down the right hallway, only knowing that I had to put as much distance as I could from him.

Turn left or go straight? I didn't even get to decide as my legs continued to bring me forward, the white walls blurring past all around me.

I could hardly breathe, and my heart felt like it was about to drop to my stomach, the cold and dreaded memories from the School filling my mind as I ran through this blood-curdling maze.

And it really was a maze.

My mom and Jeb constructed the second floor with intertwining hallways for our safety. The flock and I try not to think too much about it, and just follow the same route over and over to reach the stairs from our rooms, but we'd also had to memorize the layout incase of a break in or attack. Though the memories were painful, it was smart of them to think of a distraction for any threats, even putting in dead ends and crossroads. If any Erasers/Flyboys/M-geeks/dumbots/FBI/CIA/fangirls got into the house, we'd be the only ones to know how to navigate the second floor.

Only, I couldn't seem to remember how to get to my room. I was in over my head, just running and running and turning a corner whenever I came to a stop.

There were flashes – the burning sensation that would escalate up my legs if I paused for too long, the yelling of the scientists to keep moving forward, the same white walls that looked exactly like the ones I was running through, the menacing growls and snapping jaws of the Erasers as they came after me – disappearing from my mind just as quickly as they came, but never fast enough for me to forget. I could never forget those horrible experiences.

Nothing could describe the pain I felt on my arms, shoulders and back. The adrenaline numbed it enough, and the panic of getting away from him seemed so much more important than my health, but I could still feel the immense throbbing and heat from all the scrapes and cuts. It was like each wounds had its own pulse, and it thudded in time with my heart. I didn't allow it to slow me down, but I knew it was definitely a besetting factor and that only urged me to try harder.

I only realized I was crying when everything around me turned blurry. I couldn't believe I was crying again – wasn't my body or mind tired of all this? Did I not have a say in anything I did anymore?

I didn't want to cry. I didn't want to relive those horrible memories. But they just kept coming, pouring into my head, pouring down my cheeks. It was unstoppable.

I'd swipe the back of my hands roughly against my eyes, but it was useless because they'd start to fill up again. I ran blindly, not even knowing if I was running in circles or if I was leading myself to him. I could only run away.

These walls were sickly familiar, making it hard for me to distinguish reality from memory. While I continued to run I could see myself in a flowing white hospital dress, but when I'd look down I was clad in denim shorts. The hair that was whipping in my eyes could've passed for my long hair that's never been cut in the School, but a small part of my mind was reminding me I had bangs.

Reality from memory – I was confusing the both of them.

Though those memories were stored in the back of my head, my reality brought the past back. I knew the truth, but it was mingling with old memories, muddling my thoughts.

This maze was to test my reflexes and speed, but I knew I was home.

Fang, my best friend, was running after me to see if I was okay, and yet he was also out to get me.

I knew nothing was going to hurt me, but I just kept running.

_Everything was so confusing._

I knew he was following me. My sensitive hearing could pick up every move he made – the panting of his breath, the stomping of his feet on the ground, and the thumping of his fingers on the walls. Estimating his distance, I'd say he was only a few feet behind me.

How did he catch up so fast? I knew I was running my fastest, not even letting my injuries faze me, and yet he was already so close. _So close. _

Maybe I was only jogging. Maybe I was running the same route over and over. Maybe I lead myself to him. I didn't really know.

He was shouting, but it was all just non-sense. The blood rushing to my ears drowned out all other sounds, and I could only hear my own panicked intake of breath coming from my dry, cold throat.

I didn't know what to believe inside my head – if this was Fang or just another Eraser chasing after me. His protests didn't make me recognize the sound of his voice, only alarming me further that he was getting closer and closer.

When I came across an intersection, I chose to go right, never stopping in my stride through the halls. That was how big this house was – I've come across Gazzy and my mom's room, but still haven't stumbled across mine or anyone else's.

By now I could practically feel the blood seeping through the bandages, stitches ripping open and wounds rubbing against the gauze, irritating it.

It sucked having this flight mechanism build in me, telling my body that no matter how tired or how wounded and worn out you are, you have to keep running to survive.

My poor back and wings were probably in its original bloody state by now but my mind couldn't care less, making me pump my legs harder, my bare feet sore from all the running.

Any moment now, the Erasers were going to round the corner and come after me.

I could hear him screaming, telling me to stop, but I wasn't stupid just to let myself give up. I wouldn't let the whitecoats win.

_Find my room. Find my room. Find my room._

It was weird that I even had a room amongst these halls. Why would they place my room in a labyrinth?

_His claws were scrapping loudly against the white walls, stalking me slowly._

"_You can run, but you can't hide, little birdie…"_

"Max! _Please!_ You're hurting yourself! We don't have to talk; just _please_ stop running!"

"_We can go at this for hours, Maximum. It'll only make me hungrier…"_

Which was true? What was I really hearing?

In the next second, I felt rough fingers wrap around my upper arm and I screamed bloody murder. I could practically feel his breath on the back of my neck, and that only made me panic more and elbow him in the gut to slow him down.

I continued running, more reckless then ever knowing that he was literally on my heels. I thought I had left him crouched on the ground behind me, still gathering his bearings from the blow, but when I rounded a corner in the next intersection he was there.

I looked at his face for a second and saw the worry and pain in his eyes, saw his lips moving, but that was all I knew and I turned away and backtracked quickly, almost tripping over my own feet.

_Left. Left. Right. Straight. Backtrack. Right. Left._

It was hard to keep running, already in my weakened state and going at such a fast pace, trying to avoid ramming my sides and shoulders into the walls. Each slam sent a jolt of fire on that area, and liquid fire was starting to spread on my kneecaps and down the sides of my torso. With each passing second I started to notice that I was slowing down, and that was all the more terrifying. _Shit._

The sound of someone else's breathing told me that he was catching up again, and I pushed my legs that already felt like giving up to go faster.

I came across a hall, with 2 left turns, 1 right turn and a forked end that led to another set of hallways. I had no time to think about where I was and I randomly chose a path, sprinting towards the second left turn.

But only when I made the turn and was halfway down the hall did I realize my mistake. In my haste, I didn't notice the wall at the very end up until my blurry eyes looked up to begin to choose another path.

But there were no other passageways from this hall.

I was at a dead end.

I was about to turn around, already deciding to go down the single right turn when my enhanced senses heard the hurried footsteps from so close by.

I sucked in a breath as everything around me seemed to close in on me.

_He was only a few paces away from reaching me, and I was at a dead end._

I could practically feel the blood draining from my body in fear (both literally and figuratively) as I ran to the end of the hallway and threw my body against the wall, shrieking with panic and rage, as if banging and pounding against it would magically break down the wall and lead to another set of hallways.

Panic completely seized my heart and I couldn't think of any other solution. I was _desperate_ – because what was worse than the actual chase was getting caught. You never really knew what they were going to do to you for failing, whether they'd just bring you back to your cage or punish you for hours. And I didn't want to face that just yet, because I was always scared of the pain.

Why did this have to be a dead end? How could I have gone and ran through so much, only to be caught in the end anyways?

Now that I finally stopped enough to breathe in gulps full of air did the fatigue catch up to me. It was like the weight of the world just dropped on my shoulders, the force as strong and overwhelming like a punch to the face, and I slowly slid down the wall and onto the ground.

I was _exhausted_. Like after ever maze exercise, there wasn't any fight left in me as the Erasers would draped me over their shoulders like a sack of potatoes and carry me back to my cage.

I couldn't fight him off now. I could try and give my best shot, punch and kick like mad until I would lose consciousness, but doubtless that I wasn't going to win.

I closed my eyes as tight as I could as if not being able to see him would make him go away. I pressed my crumpled form against the wall, wrapping my arms around my knees and curling into a protective ball.

My heart felt like it was about to explode, thudding painfully and loudly in my chest that it was all I was hearing. Another wave of adrenaline rushed through me, making me warm all over, but this wasn't the kind of adrenaline before a fight. This was the adrenaline that anticipated an attack, the muscles tensing so painfully it hurt to move.

And then I knew he was there. Without lifting my head from my knees, I could feel it in my bones, as he stood at the end of the hallway and looked at me.

For a while I didn't hear anything, and I held my breath in the hopes that he suddenly thought I wasn't worth the trouble. But then I heard it, even against the marble floor I heard it, and I just clenched my closed eyes tighter.

Ever step he took, jarringly loud as it echoed in the hall, made me flinch as he neared me. And the closer he got, the more it felt like I was going to have a heart attack, my heart beating faster as his steps got louder.

I tried pressing myself closer to the wall, wanting to disappear but to no avail. I even started to shake slightly, but that also could've been the cold talking.

Then finally…silence.

There were no punches or slaps, no rough hands to drag me to my dog crate, no pulling of hair or even any harsh quips. It was just quiet and nothing else.

I was waiting for something, anything to happen but it was quiet for a long time. Was he still standing on front of me or did he go away? I didn't hear any retreating footsteps… Or was he just staring at me? Was he going to hurt me or haul me _back-_

And then suddenly I felt strong familiar arms wrap around me, the wiriness and warmth welcoming as they slowly lifted me onto a lap. It was all so unexpected that I didn't have time to scream or react in anyway; my limp body just complied and I stayed unmoving as my side pressed against a hard chest, still in his arms.

At first I felt my body tense, a scream bubbling up my throat, but then I started to _remember_ this feeling and all my worries seemed to vanish. It was blissful in a way, to feel such comfort that I haven't felt in a very long time.

Time passed. I didn't know how long we stayed like that, but ever so slowly my body began to relax, my back straightening, my finger unknotting from my hair, my arms and legs slightly stretching and my breathing returning to normal. I started to feel oddly at peace despite my earlier reactions.

And he just held me, one arm cradling mine while the other was wrapped around my waist, and it felt like he was never going to let me go. There were no words of comfort or shushing as I cried; I could only feel his fingers brush back the hair that fall onto my face, and his lips lightly brush against my hair as my head rested against his shoulder.

He started whispering something, barely audible even in this silence, and it sounded so soothing that it made everything feel better. I knew without having to look that I was safe now; there was no need to run anymore.

Once I started to feel empty inside, completely wasted from all my back and forth emotions from awhile ago, I was able to gather up the courage to open my eyes and lift my head to face him. I stopped crying when everything become much clearer in my mind, and even if I knew I was red-faced and blotchy, I _had_ to see him.

The urge to know what he was thinking and find out whether he was really _here_ didn't want to go away no matter how scared I was to find out.

When I tilted my head back to look into his eyes, I felt horrible.

His eyes, which were actually a deep, dark brown the color of brewed coffee if you truly stared into them, were staring right back into mine. Nothing majestic with gold flecks in his eyes nor was it filled with prophetic depth like in all those books, but there really was something magical about them – the way they would reel you in, the way they saw right through my soul, the way they could hide his deepest feelings beneath.

And yet, I could see everything so clearly now, with all his thoughts written across them. It tore me that they were filled with so much confusion, hurt, sorrow and worry, and _I_ was the cause of it all. Our whole dilemma was enough to make him actually show me what he was feeling – and that was a scary thought.

He never showed me pain when he was almost killed. He never complained when he was hungry or tired. He never displayed his emotions for anything, but I saw _everything _in that moment because that was how bad I hurt him.

This was Fang, the boy I grew up with, who always had my back.

Fang, my best friend, who knew me like the back of his hand.

_Fang_, the boy I fell in love with, who I was absolutely sure was my _soulmate_.

There wasn't anything I believed in more than us, and up until today my mind can't get over how perfect we were for each other. We were _made_ for each other.

But then…all this happened. And now it seems like we're broken beyond repair.

I felt like crying all over again. My heart was breaking, wondering how something so perfect could crumble into this, how my relationship with Fang became so messed up.

I felt lost without him, felt like my wings were cut off and I was thrown into a freefall. He was everything I couldn't be, which was why we were so perfect for each other. We were like 2 pieces of a puzzle, never able to feel complete without the other.

And I missed him – missed the feel of his hand holding mine; missed his hugs that drowned out all my problems; missed his soft, quiet laughter that filled the air; and I missed his imperfectly perfect crooked smile – the one that brightened up my day and relieved some of the stress that was killing me.

_I missed my best friend._

But right now, things were really strained between us. We haven't talked for longer than a two-line conversation, when back then we would talk every night as thought we haven't seen each other in ages. I kept my distance from him – physically, emotionally and mentally – because I just didn't have the energy to deal with that right now.

And at long last, _Fang found me._

I didn't think about what was wrong at the moment, that things weren't fine between us just yet; I could only occupy my mind with the feeling that this felt right. Just staying in his arms seemed to make everything click into place. I was confused with what was real and what was from my memories, but somehow Fang made everything seem so simple with a certain clarity as he held me, making me wonder how I could've ever been so confused when at this moment I was _sure_ that I was home, that I wasn't in danger, and that Fang was coming after me to make sure I was alright. He was only trying to see if I was alright.

Knowing this, my heart couldn't help but swell with happiness at the thought. At the thought that he wasn't giving up on me, despite how cold and ruthless I've been to him. He was still fighting for me, even if I've hurt him.

He still cared for me, even if I've been showing him that I no longer cared for him.

The need to make sure this wasn't all just a dream seemed to wash over me, completely overwhelming all my senses that it seemed as significant as _breathing_, and I quickly fisted the front of his shirt in my hand, pulling him even closer towards me.

Using my other hand, I slowly lifted it to his face and carefully traced his features, the tips of my fingers brushing lightly on the curve of his eyebrow where the bruising was starting to fade, to the faint scar that ran down his temple, the side of his face up to his angular jaw line, and finally reaching his lips.

My eyes followed the movement of my fingers, but through my peripheral vision I could see Fang staring at me, his eyes seemingly darkening if it were possible as some other emotion took over. There was an intensity in them that I wanted to figure out, but I was still staring at his lips, my thumb tracing the curve of his bottom lip with concentration.

Subconsciously, I bit my own lip as I stared with confusion; I didn't know what I was confused with, really, but all thoughts of uncertainty disappeared from my mind when Fang suddenly brought his lips down on mine.

Actually, I didn't even know who kissed who, whether I tilted my head up or he lowered his head to reach mine, but I didn't really care. It felt like all my worries disappeared and I could finally breathe easy, just the feeling of being with Fang distracted me enough that I felt peaceful and content and _whole_.

He kissed me back gently, carefully, always keeping in mind my injuries and how fragile I was at this moment, but I didn't want languid kisses with his hands placed protectively on my waist.

The only time our kisses ever seemed rated PG was when Fang kissed me in the cave trying to 'change my mind' about settling down, when we finally got together that time in the desert, and when I thought I would die trying to save Angel. Nowadays whenever we'd kiss, it would remain sweet and innocent. We would make-out, but it was never anything lustful or needy.

Pretending to be siblings during the time we attended school sobered us enough to know when to keep our hands off each other, and we didn't have that kind of luxury to always go on dates and act like a happy couple. I had a flock to lead, and he had to be my second-in-command; we couldn't let our relationship get in the way.

But I've had enough of resisting him and holding back for so long that it felt like it was all coming down to this. Fang and I have been apart for so long that the farther the distance grew, the more the need to have him back became almost painful. I was hungry for his touch, for the feel of his hands all over me. I wanted to kiss him with all I've got, and I wanted him reciprocate them back.

Trying to show Fang what I wanted, I bit down on his lip. I heard him groan softly against my own and pull my body slightly towards his, but it felt like that wasn't enough.

Without breaking the kiss, I shifted from my position on his lap until I was straddling his hips, my knees on either side of him. My hands went up to his hair, my fingers tangling and running through the dark mess, and I started to press myself against him, leaving completely no space between us. There's been too much of that lately.

Fang seemed to finally understand what I was asking for as he angled his head to kiss me better, and I didn't hesitate to open my mouth to his.

The feeling of kissing Fang was _amazing_ (not that you'd ever know), it was a wonder how I'd gone about my life without kissing him like this for so long. Electricity seemed to run through my nerves that I'd never felt so alive. My body didn't even seem to know the meaning of exhaustion anymore, even if just a few minutes ago I was ready to pass out, because the thrill of being with him washed it all away.

_It felt like heaven._

And I _knew_ that he wanted this just as much as I did because when things started to get hot and heavy, there was nothing slowing us down. His back was pressed against the wall, my weight against his body, when he suddenly moved the both of us to slide sideways to the ground.

I didn't know how we managed, but somehow he was hovering on top of me, leaning most of his weight on his elbows as one of his hands held the back of my head and the other gripped my waist. I didn't miss how he winced when my hands lightly jostled his shoulder, but he went on like it was nothing and went back to concentrating on me. The fluorescent lighting tuned to black as Fang's midnight wings spread around us like a curtain. I mean, a hallway wasn't romantic even in the slightest, but shroud in darkness my whole perspective seemed to chance.

As we continued to kiss, his tongue exploring my mouth, I couldn't stop my hands from slipping under his shirt, smiling against his lips when I heard him moan low in his throat.

He drew back quickly, and I smirked at his expression; he was breathing raggedly just like I was, and his eyebrows were scrunched up, clearly expressing his annoyance. We were both continuously trying to one-up each other, and from the looks of it I was winning.

Suddenly, his eyes flashed and a dangerous glint took over, his lips tugging up at the corner into a sly smile that made him look so damn _sexy_. I blinked twice and raised my eyebrows, wondering what the hell he was thinking.

His head came back down again, only this time he kissed my temple and made his way down my face slowly, brushing his lips over my cheekbone, down to my jaw and onto my neck.

One of my hands tried to push him back in a pathetic attempt incase he ended up seeing my expiration date (yes, even when we were making out I remembered), but he just pressed himself closer and began sucking on the side of my neck.

Moving lower, he trailed kisses down to my collarbone, and even dangerously low near my cleavage. Like, whoa there! _Where do you think you're going?_ But I'll admit, we were beginning to reverse roles here. I wasn't even sure if I moaned, maybe even more than once, but at that moment I didn't care if I sounded wimpy.

In fact, I probably sounded ridiculous since my mouth wasn't busy doing anything. It was like he was getting me to admit defeat as he just kept teasing and taking pleasure in that. Well, not that I wasn't enjoying myself either.

When I felt him bite tauntingly on the skin where my neck met my shoulder, I'd just about had enough and grabbed his head to bring his mouth back to mine. I started to wrap my leg around his waist, his body still over mine in between my legs, but that was when everything came crashing down all around me and I gasped in pain.

Since I pulled him closer to me, allowing his body to crush mine, his full weight became too much and my back suddenly burst with searing pain, feeling like it was lit on fire. Ever since we started making out, it was only slightly throbbing, but I just ignored it. Now it was becoming excruciatingly _unbearable_.

And then suddenly everything that just happened clicked into place. How we ended up like this in the first place, the confrontation, the chase, the delusions running through my head, and the desperate need to hold each other that took over.

My eyes snapped open and in one swift move, I pushed him off me harshly. I even almost bit his tongue when I clenched my teeth, and put a hand over my mouth, moving back on the heels of my feet to get away from Fang. My back slammed against the wall, putting about three feet between me and him, and when my eyes flew up to his, a ton of emotions were swimming in his eyes.

I was sorry. I didn't want to push him away, that was about the last thing I wanted, but the pain snapped me back to reality and only now did I realize how dumb we both were.

I was still very much broken. We healed quickly, but the scabs and scars were still patching up my skin and I had to be very careful about my actions. If I'd made it any worse, the healing process would take even longer, and I might not even be able to fly anymore. Making out with Fang in _that_ manner was far from gentle, and added that I strained my wings to fly, I went against everything the doctor told me to do: _nothing strenuous._

And I was going against _my_ 'practice'. I wasn't supposed to go and complicate things further with Fang; I was supposed to keep my distance. I had other things to deal with, and now that we reached second base, I couldn't turn around and brush it off. How could I be cruel enough to make it seem like everything's just dandy, and then turn around and go back to ignoring him? I should've just allowed him to hold me when I cried and then retreated to my room when the tears stopped. Now I had no choice but to talk to him.

When I looked back at Fang, I watched him sigh and run a hand through his long messy hair, looking out into the hall and probably thinking I was going to just walk away like I usually did.

Did he think that low of me? That I'd just go on with my life like I wasn't also hurting inside?

Preparing myself, I licked my swollen lips and tasted blood, probably from when he bit them or something. I drew my knees up to my chest and pulled up the sleeve of my sweater, the wide neckline slipping close to my elbow.

In the back of my head, I couldn't help but wonder what would've happened if I hadn't pushed him away. I could see the hem of Fang's shirt riding up due to my hands, but I shook the thought away and focused on what I was supposed to do.

Taking a deep breath, I wrapped my arms around my knees and faced him, finally giving Fang what I owed him for so long.

"So what were you planning on telling me?"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**YAY!** You're finally going to find out a bunch of stuff! :D

Oh yeah…the above scene had to happen because I had to make Max do something that would make her stay. And I know she would've ran before, but the situation's different now. (Even I'd feel like a bitch for running away if that ever happened. Think about it.)

That was so hard for me to write. Never again will that happen, for all those virgin-minded out there. And if you _did_ like it, lol too bad sorry. :))

**I've noticed that** my writing got a helluva lot better. 8| I had to refresh my mind about my story so I scanned through the first few chapters and _sacred bovine_, I want to go hide in a hole. Oh God… _the clichés were killing me!_ At least now I know what not to write. -_-

**Can I please get 13 reviews for this chapter?** I know there are so much more readers than that and it's really disappointing. My subscriptions work just fine, thank you very much, and the lot of you are just lazy. :| It took me forever to write this so I hope you appreciate my efforts. **Please tell me what you think!**

Now it's time for…**question of the chapter**: Which Max Ride character are you most like?

Or more specifically, which flock member are you most like? (I'm referring to Max's flock from book 1-5 when Fang was still awesome and Dylan was probably still being cloned and maturing in his man-body in Canada) You can even include Total if you want, but I'm mainly focusing on Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy and Angel. :) **Please speak objectively**. As in, not who you want to be or pretend to be, but someone who you're most like.

**For me: **I'd say I'm a little bit like everyone (except for Fang and Angel), but I'm most similar to Iggy. I have my sarcastic and witty tendencies as well as a bossy side, and I'm very talkative, and I'm like, the master at mimicking voices (my class knows me for it), but I'm kind of also the class clown and I'm pretty laid back about everything. I get stressed about school work, and you see me ranting about it in my ANs, but outwardly I act like its all good. My circle of friends knows me as the 'funny and satirical one' because I'm always cracking jokes and bring up random stuff. Even my friends who've read Maximum Ride see me as Iggy, lol. If I meet any of you guys sometime, we can have a party. ;)

**So which flock member are you most like**?

**REVIEW GAIZ! Who still even reads this story? :(**

**Oh!** And who here has a **tumblr account**? :) I'm looking to follow people, so just mention it in your review if you're okay with that. But keep in mind, I'm only following depending on your posts.

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	37. 1,028 Words

Hi guys. :)

Thanks so much to **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **Rhaksha Ora**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **SeaSaltChocolate**, **booklover98**, **fireflies371**, **Eurwen de Vrill**, **maximumpotter101**, **AnikaandAj**, **volleychik12**, **DancingintheRayne**, **Beileve-It-Or-Not** and **Kalianna Loralei** for reviewing last chapter.

And special thanks to **SharpestSatire** for helping me with some of my writing. :D

This is another risk, baby. Here it goes!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Taking a deep breath, I wrapped my arms around my knees and faced him, finally giving Fang what I owed him for so long._

"_So what were you planning on telling me?"_

Fang whipped his head to face me quickly, and I was surprised to see surprise flash through _his_ eyes. He was usually really good at hiding his emotions no matter what the circumstances; I guess that always flew out the window whenever he was with me.

He narrowed his eyes, and I couldn't help but feel like he was studying me, trapped under his gaze. "Answer me this first, why did you run away from me like that?"

Okay, I knew this wasn't going to be pretty, but that was the last thing I thought he'd ask me. And wasn't _I_ supposed to be asking _him _why he treated me the way he did? He owed me a lot more than I owed him.

I knew the answer to his question – it was actually really simple in my mind, but so very difficult to explain to Fang. How could I tell him that I thought he was dangerous without hurting his feelings? Maybe I was crazy, but it didn't mean that I wanted my boyfriend to know it.

I took another deep breath, ready to tell him about what came over me when something else slipped out of my mouth.

"Well, I'm not Maximum 'Charging Off' Ride for nothing." I grinned cheekily, trying to get a good reaction out of him, but he stayed stony and expressionless.

_Jeez._ Tough crowd…

His eyes were fixed solely on mine, and I knew I was supposed to be 'scared', but I couldn't help but notice how good-looking he was even then. _Ugh._ He was probably still pissed that I pushed him away.

It was hard to breathe with all the tension, and even with me and Fang leaning on the walls parallel each other, there was only a few feet between us. All the heat that spread through me from a while ago was gone, and I shivered from the cold atmosphere. My chest and back hurt, the after-effects of taking off like that finally settling in, but Fang's icy gaze seemed to hurt even more.

There was no point in trying to find a way out of this, so I focused my eyes on my knees and explained to him what happened as best as I could, picking invisible lint from my jeans just to have something else to do.

I told him how afraid I was about being confronted, which lead to me running away. I tried my best not to sound completely bonkers when I explained to him how my mind would tell me that I was at the School, and how the white walls in the maze reminded me too much of the exercises we did back there. I kept stuttering and repeating lines, putting emphasis on my confusion and memories of the School, trying to make him understand what when on in my head and how real it all felt. I really hoped I didn't sound too crazy.

"…I couldn't turn around because I could hear that you were already there, so I sat at the corner and wished I would disappear. I hoped you wouldn't find me, but you did and…and that sort of made everything better. When you held me…everything suddenly became clear. I knew everything in that moment, and when I looked up to make sure it was all real, everything else just sort of…happened." I trailed off towards the end, referring to our 'get a room'-worthy display just a few minutes ago.

I felt flushed and warm all over, embarrassed to my core.

Firstly, I _hate_ talking about how I feel, and gushing willingly my '_fragile heart's desires and hidden dreams locked within me'_ to somebody else was frickin' suicide, even if that person was Fang.

We've never exchanged, "I love you." "No, I love you more." "Oh stop it! I love you most!" mushy sentences like those because they make me _sick, _and I'm talking about someone I would absolutely give my life for, because that's just how much I loathe emotions. I couldn't believe I just admitted that to him! I was practically just handing over priceless blackmail without expecting anything in return. I felt _stupid._

I was also blushing furiously because of the last part of my explanation. I still couldn't get the image out of my head, replaying the scene over and over that only now did I notice how girly and desperate I acted. Was I really capable of such hormonal reactions like that? Did I really just moan because of Fang's kisses? I made fun of people like that at school! I was not that kind of girl. I'm _Maximum Ride_; I have never been needy in my _entire_ life. _What has become of me!_

It was quiet after my declaration, and my heart froze at the thought of Fang laughing his ass off. Why did I just _say_ that? Of course he's probably already planning on checking me in the funny farm tonight-

"Are you really _that_ determined not to make amends with me? Running away and hurting yourself further just so you wouldn't have to hear what I have to say?" His voice was dripping with bitter amusement, his harsh laugh clearly filled anger. I flinched, hating having to deal with an enraged Fang, but at the same time I started to feel pissed too.

He had every right to be angry at me, but did he expect me just to accept it and not be livid myself? I looked up from my knees and glared coldly back, weeks worth of pent-up anger making its way up my throat.

"_Oh of course, Fang!_ I enjoy purposefully deteriorating my body's health conditions because I'm such a masochist! It's really exciting! I'll even lend you one of my razors sometime and we can have a party!" I said, bursting with sarcasm, which immediately turned into rage in the next second. "Are you fucking _stupid?_ Did you hit your head too hard on the pavement last week and lose all your brain cells? Because you know, I may have gotten temporary amnesia, but there's nothing in the world that could make me forget how much you _hurt_ me! _I was frickin' mad at you!_ I was so mad that my hate for you was probably enough to rot a country the size of Canada! If you didn't keep your distance, I would've ripped you apart limb by limb when I had the chance! Is it suddenly _my_ fault that I didn't want to have anything to do with you?" I spat.

Funny how short my temper was compared to Fang's; whenever we'd argue, I would always end up using the word 'fuck' in my retorts.

I couldn't believe this. How did he suddenly pin the blame on me when his agreement to siding with Angel was what tore us apart? Was he that dense, thinking that I'd just listen to whatever crap explanation he'd give me and we'd all live happily ever after strolling through sunflower fields?

I heard him groan with frustration, banging the back of his head against the wall, only to rub the area a few seconds later. He shifted so that his arm rested atop his bent knee, and he leaned forward, seething.

"Jesus, Max! _It's been 3 weeks!_ Haven't you gotten over it yet? I know that I hurt you, and I'm _really_ sorry, but that doesn't mean I never stopped caring-"

Despite his sweet last words, it was like he was basically asking me why I wouldn't befriend him if he just killed my mother. Or why I was angry at him just because he'd burned down my house and destroyed my life like it was no big deal.

I got over being a mutant bird-kid quickly. I moved on with my life after Ari's death with the snap of my fingers. I accepted most of the shit life throws at me within seconds. But giving up my role as leader was so much more important than that.

I leaned forward to mirror his actions, just as Fang was pushed back against the wall. I forgot how sensitive my new ability was, gasping quietly at its sudden appearance, but that didn't mean I didn't slightly enjoy it.

"Don't even start with that! And no, Fang. I'm not going to get over it. I'm _never_ going to get over it, because no matter what happened, whatever my reasons, you were _supposed_ to be on _my_ side! You were _supposed_ to have my back, gone after me when I left, been there for me when I didn't know what to do or where to go! What ever happened to that? _Tell me._ Tell me why you let me down because I'm really _fucking_ curious to find out!" I shrieked, breathing raggedly from my long guilt-tripping speech.

Fang, in turn, closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing deeply through his mouth. "It's a really long story, Max."

"I don't care if you can sum it up in a goddamn haiku or write a freakin' textbook about it. I want to know why you did it, Fang, and I've got forever to listen to you. _Why didn't you side with me?_" I said slowly, feeling so desperate inside to understand why he did the things he did.

There was no doubt that I was still afraid of what I might hear, afraid of the truth. There was still an inkling of hope for me to get away, but now that I was here facing Fang, it…it wasn't so bad. I didn't feel a desperate urge to hurl or disappear; I just felt really cold and numb.

Maybe I was prepared for this after all. Anxious, yes, but we were both here already and I kind of owed this to Fang. I knew this wasn't one of my priorities, but I'd rather cross it out of my list of things to worry about and be over with it.

Besides, Fang was often on my mind – how we didn't agree on moving, why he didn't back me up, and that one question and thought that always _bothered_ me ever since our mission in California.

It was difficult to think about anything else because my thoughts would always shift back to Fang. He was too important to me.

It was time to end this. The more I postponed this confrontation, the more my mind would imagine the worst possibilities and reasons for why he betrayed me, eating me away on the inside and clouding my thoughts constantly.

A few seconds passed as I watched Fang mull things over in his mind, sorting his thoughts. His eyebrows were scrunched together as he looked down at his lap, then he raised his hand to run through his hair.

At first I didn't understand why it would take him so long to explain, but then I remembered that Fang wasn't the most articulate person. He knew and experienced a lot of things just like the rest of the flock, but Fang was much better at expressing his feelings through his actions than his words. His mind was still searching for the right things to say, to tell me his side without having to say too much.

"Look, I…" he began, biting his lip. He closed his eyes again and took a deep breath, before raising his head to face me again. "Do you remember that day we first fought? That time we didn't agree on moving? Max, you have to understand that though most of the time we agree on the same things, I'm going to have a different opinion from yours once in a while. It was just crap timing that we decided to argue about that when I was still upset with you. Do you remember? You sprung the idea of moving to Seattle immediately after I got mad at you for keeping secrets from me. I mean, did you expect me to just eagerly agree with you, especially since I _didn't_ want our family to move just yet?"

I opened my mouth to question why, but he cut me off with a sharp, "Shut up and let me finish." I quickly clenched my teeth and focused on his face, willing to comply.

He would never keep his eyes on me for too long, their black orbs darting back and forth, focusing on my brown ones intently for a second then turning to stare at his knee in the next – a clear sign that he was having trouble with this.

"The kids really like it here. We have shelter, food and clothes, and they only just started to feel normal. I know you've always wanted to give this to them, Max, and they finally have it here. This was what life would've been like if we weren't genetic mutations. And I know that you enjoy this just as much as I do. It won't last for long, but you have to live a little.

"And I'm not an idiot. I know the precautions of staying here; I _know_ how dangerous it could be if we were found out. I don't know how Mitzi found out about us, if she saw us on one of our dates or a picture, but I don't regret it. Maybe our lives are at risk right now, but when have they not been? We shouldn't live our lives being afraid all the time. We all like it here so we should fight for it. If they send Erasers, or Flyboys or M-geeks, you _know_ we can take them on. I know it's better to be safe, but if we let the School or Itex control our lives, we're always just going to keep running." He said, looking like he was choking as he swallowed.

Okay, clean-up on aisle…whatever this hallway was, because I think my jaw just hit the ground.

And I wasn't just stunned that he was capable of pulling a Nudge on me, but because in a way he was also _right_.

How could I not think of this before? That we could both possible be correct with different reasons? I wanted to move because it's what was safest - a simple decision that could save our lives, but would also make the flock miserable. And on the other hand, Fang wanted us to stay and stand our ground – it was dangerous and reckless, but he was more focused on our family's feelings and well-beings.

We both knew my plan was the smarter, more responsible choice. But his, his was so much _better_. He wanted us to live without being afraid, to take risks, and to enjoy what we have at the moment. To live knowing that what we did was enough, and that we truly lived our lives without just existing on earth.

Contemplating this, I felt like the idiot now. The full force of the meaning of his words just hit me, and I was speechless.

Wasn't that what I even stood for? I was _Maximum Ride _for goodness sake. _This_ was the ride of _my _life and I was wasting it on living in fear. I taught the flock how important life was, to never lose hope and always take opportunities, to appreciate what you have and spend it with the people you love, but wasn't I going against everything I believed it?

I felt _pathetic_, because while I thought that I knew everything there was to know about life, I didn't actually know how to _live_ it.

And what was even worst was that his words hit me harder than they should've, because I _knew_ that I didn't have much time left. While normal people had the chance to experience 'living' later in their life at the age of 20 or even 40, I only had a few weeks left. A few _days_ left that I've spent keeping secrets from my family, arguing with them, and focusing more on the bad things that have happened. I was going to _die_ soon and there were not a lot of things that I could look back on and smile about.

I snapped out of my reverie when Fang began to talk again, his eyes flashing up to mine.

"Which brings us back to why I was angry in the first place," Fang said, and I couldn't help but tense and look away from his gaze. _Oh dear Lord, here it comes._

"You're _such_ a hypocrite, questioning _my_ loyalty in our friendship when _you_ were the one who went around thinking I wouldn't notice all your little episodes. I can _see_ these things, Max. Hell, _Iggy_ know it too and he's blind! What? Did you really think you could hide those from me?

"I know it's been happening for a long time, and the longer it went on, the less patient I got. I didn't want to force you to tell me, because I trusted you would confide in me sometime. I wanted you to come to me when you were ready. I never stopped asking how you were feeling and if there was something wrong; I was just _waiting_ for you to tell me.

"You ask me why I betrayed you, but how is it that you could go on and act like everything's fine? I knew you hated it when I would pry, so I waited until you were ready to tell me. I tried to stay by your side but I could feel you pushing me away. We're best friends, Max, and yet I feel like I'm only in the background of your life. Weren't we always supposed to be there for each other? To listen to each others problems, to give advice, and to support the other no matter what? _What ever happened to that, Max?_"

I would've immediately taken a record of that for the books, shocking me further that this speech was even longer than the previous one, but that was at the back of my mind now.

He was still looking at me, but right then I felt inferior and pathetic compared to him and I just couldn't look back. I felt like a complete asshole.

He was right – he had every right to be angry, I was surprised he hasn't throttled me yet. His words – they were all true. He would always ask, but never interfere. He was very patient with me, even though I knew I was stubborn as hell.

If the roles were reversed, I would've beaten it out of him. Maybe even literally speaking. Just imagining a suspicious Fang, who would give non-committal shrugs and assure me that he was 'fine' when it was clear that things weren't, drove me up the wall. I, too, would be pissed at his behavior and demand a reason for it. I would probably yell, and curse, and pick a fight with him just to try to get him to tell me, and knowing him, he would just nonchalantly watch me, which would infuriate me further.

Was I that annoying?

My hand flew up to scratch an itch on my cheek, only to realize that it was a tear that had just been about to drop from my jaw.

I was _crying_, crying because I truly hurt Fang. No, he didn't admit to it. I know he'll never admit how much he's breaking on the inside, but I could understand from his words and read from the expression on his face that keeping this from him was a big deal. How he was able to put up a mask of indifference for so long is a mystery to me, because as I tried to put myself in his shoes, I could only imagine a quarter of the pain he's feeling.

I was afraid that the truth would hurt – and boy was _that_ an understatement. I knew that sometimes I could be dumb, but I didn't think that trying to protect the flock would only hurt them more.

"I didn't want you guys to worry…" I whispered weakly, fiddling with my fingers on my lap.

"_Well hell!_ It's why we exist, Max! We aren't a flock for nothing. It isn't fair that you can go on fussing about the others but you won't even allow your family to take care of you! I know you, Max. I know you like to be independent and try to figure things out on your own. You don't like to admit that you're hurting, or let anyone know how much this affects you, but you know you can't face all your problems by yourself. You're going to need help, and you're going to have to swallow down some of your pride and let people in. You're going to _need_ someone…and I really thought that it would be me."

Another mistake on my part. Another stab to the heart.

I couldn't say anything to that because he was right once again. No retaliation came to mind so I instead bit my lip, wallowing in all my faults.

I thought he was done scolding me then. I expected him to get up and go, now that I've had a taste of my own medicine. I knew that's what I would've done if it were me; I liked to make my victims feel guilty and miserable. It would hurt to see him walk away, but that's what I deserved. I turned my head away from him so I wouldn't be able to know when he'd leave, but he surprised me even more by speaking up again.

My wide eyes looked up in confusion, incapable of comprehending that this was the longest time he's ever talked. Maybe once Fang was on a role, it was impossible for him to stop.

"But…you should also know that I regret siding with Angel. It's true that only Iggy was against our decision initially, but only after you flew away did I realize my mistake.

"I'm not usually impulsive, not really, but at that time it made sense to go along with Angel's argument. I was acting in anger. I was still mad at you when we fought about moving, and the longer I stayed mad with you, the more I thought of things to hate you for. I tried not to be, but every time you'd act like things were just fine after a headache or a coughing fit, I just got angrier. I would remember that you were keeping things from me, that you didn't think to talk to me, and that sort of made up my mind about everything.

"I wasn't thinking straight. I was so mad at you, and the fact that you were getting weaker justified my actions. I remember saying to you that I wanted to defend you, to be on your side, but you made it so hard for me. How could I side with you when everything that Angel said was right, and you never tried telling me anything that would make me back you up? I _couldn't_ back you up – not when I didn't know your reasons in the first place. I know we're supposed to be there for each other no matter what, but I just felt so betrayed that it seemed reasonable to side with Angel.

"Sometimes we do stupid things, Max. There have been countless times when you would make wrong decisions for the flock. I know you well enough to know when you regret some of the things you did. You have to remember that we're only kids as well, and we're still learning things ourselves. So I'm really sorry that I acted without thinking. Not siding with you was a huge mistake, and I'd take it back if I could. I didn't know why you kept those things from me, and maybe I'll never find out, but now I know that we shouldn't keep fighting. It…it doesn't feel right." He said, and after a long silence I knew he was finally done because he wasn't saying anything anymore. He was completely spent.

I was trying to look at him this time, but he wouldn't stare right back. I noticed the way his fists were clenching and unclenching, the rigidness of his posture even though he was slouching. I could tell he felt _vulnerable_, and maybe even embarrassed; he just admitted his feelings and his reasons, when most of the time he would keep to himself.

It wasn't unusual for him to talk a lot, it's just that he beat his all-time record. We would talk every night before, and sometimes it would only be him who would speak. It was only around others that he would talk less, because he didn't want to let anyone other than the flock in.

I sort of understood where this came from. For the past few weeks, he's been quiet, locked up in his room or just lost in his thoughts. Maybe he's been thinking about this all along. He talks only when needed, so I'm sure that this was important to him, to explain his side of things so that I would understand. He didn't want me to go on thinking he just betrayed me for no reason, even thought he wasn't a big fan of talking.

There was still a part of me, my 14-year old self, that told me to fight back and brush off his reasons like it was all just bullshit. That's what I did when I was 14, always pushing Fang away and arguing with him about the smallest things.

But I was 16 now and I changed a lot in the past years. I was still very much tempted to stick my chin in the air and walk away with apathy, but I've come to realize that if I didn't stop for a moment that day in the desert and accept Fang, then I wouldn't have grown into what I am today.

I've matured a lot since then. I'm not saying I wouldn't pull pranks and refrain from talking back to adults and higher-ups. I still make mistakes, but I knew how to make sound decisions and when to put my pride aside.

This was one of those times – when I had to choose whether to forgive Fang or not. Even after he explained to me his side, my heart was still bitter about our disagreement. I understood where he came from but you just can't force your feelings to change in a snap.

Forgiveness was a rare thing for me to go around and give willingly, but it no longer mattered whose fault this was and who started it. I could hold the grudge forever, but where would I go from there? The only path left was absolution.

To show Fang that I accepted his reasons, it was now my turn to explain my side. I probably wouldn't be able to explain my reasons very well, especially since it really didn't make sense, but I had to try my best. I didn't want him to go on either, thinking that I'll continue to make completely rash decisions like I did before.

"Well I honestly don't know." I said breathlessly, finally breaking the peace after what seemed like ages. He looked at me and I made sure he saw the truth in my eyes, that I was laying what I knew on the line. "I don't exactly remember when it started. It was only headaches at first; I thought it was just The Voice bothering me again, but then I started vomiting, and getting nose bleeds, and fainting, and coughing like crazy. I think I even blacked out once in Lit class and Bris had to cover for me.

"I would've actually told you if I knew, but I didn't want you to stress about it, so I thought I could hide it from you. Maybe it's the side effects of my force field ability thingy, I don't know, but I just didn't want to worry anyone. I mean, everyone's caught up in their own issues; I didn't want to add to anyone's list."

Secretly, I was also thinking it could've been my expiration date's fault. It normally didn't show any side effects or symptoms from what I've observed from Erasers, but maybe we were different. Maybe the flock's expiration dates were much older versions, early generations of it's kind with kinks and mistakes. I knew it my heart it wasn't it, but I wasn't sure of anything in that department. I just accepted it and made the best out of my situation.

I could've also told Fang right then and there about my death date of doom, but that was a problem for another time. Besides, if Fang found out, Angel might be able to read it from his mind and I wasn't ready for my whole family to know just yet. For now, I will revel in the feeling of finally knowing and explaining each other's sides without having to add another factor to the equation. If he found out right now, he would probably kill something.

I imagined Fang would reprimand me again for not asking for help, but all he did was sigh audibly and half-smile to himself. "Why couldn't our problems have been as difficult as choosing which dress you'd wear to the dance, or writing a 5,000 word essay on Macbeth?"

I closed my eyes and chuckled under my breath, leaning my head back against the wall. "Because Fate has a thing against fabulous bird-kids like us?" I offered, a lazy smile on my face.

And so finally, _finally_ things were the way they should be.

I wanted to just sit there in the hallway in peace, taking in the fact that I've solved one problem, but Fang wouldn't have that. Him, being the more thoughtful and practical one, wanted to take a look at my injuries and help me bandage them up. I must've looked _really _scraggly and in pain because he even offered his hand to me when he stood up.

I was about to wave it off, stubborn as I am, but when I braced my arm against the floor, I grunted in the back of my throat. I punched Fang on the arm when he stepped forward and got me on my feet (to which he rolled his eyes at), but I allowed him to support me anyway with my left arm around his shoulder as we trudged back to my room.

We started off in silence. I didn't want to be the first to break it, and I sure as hell didn't want to start bickering with Fang again just after we'd made up, but I couldn't help but ask him what was on my mind, and it came out before I had time to rephrase it nicely.

"Hey, since when did you have an appetite for dictionaries, Mr. I'm-too-cool-for-complete-sentences? Because if I know you, you would've explained your side to me in four words. Five, if you count my name." I said, smiling smugly.

"Do you want me to drop your arm and leave you here in the hallway?" he raised an eyebrow, but I knew he was joking too.

Praise the Lord Fang was practically immune to my sarcasm.

"'sides, I'd rather be over and done with it in one go. I didn't want there to be any confusion either, 'cause your questions tend to annoy me." He gave me a pointed look to which I stuck my tongue out at.

"You're worth the long explanation, Max. It was a very heart-wrenching struggle to utter such a lengthy explanation," he said, his tone filled with exaggeration, "But I could handle it." He cleverly disguised the sweet meaning of his words with humor, staring straight ahead even though I knew he could feel my eyes on him. I think a while ago was just too much for him.

"Was that all you were going to tell me? To explain your side of the story?" I asked, smiling up at him.

His face was back to its expressionless state, but it took him longer than necessary to reply. Not to mention that I didn't miss the way his throat bobbed when he swallowed before answering under his breath. "Yeah."

I pretended not to notice that, and from then we didn't talk the rest of the way. I decided to bug him about it later.

My room was surprisingly closer than I thought, as it only took 3 right turns and a left turn to reach my door. Once inside my room, Fang had to cut the back of my sweater and shirt with a pocket knife because I wasn't able to lift my arms up too high.

Please wash those minds of yours thoroughly with soap, all you dirty-minded people.

I guess I didn't have the sense to be embarrassed by this because at this moment we were Max and Fang, a flock member trying to help the other, and not Max and Fang, cutesy bird-kid couple of the year.

I've seen all the flock members stark naked at least once in my life, Iggy being the most times (Again, we were like what, six? And Iggy had a nudist phase when we were younger. Don't use that against me). It wasn't like we had a choice when we were being experimented, and we've known each other our whole lives anyway, so it seems normal. As long as none of us bring it up, we're all good.

And even if Fang's mind might've been racing at this moment, confusion, embarrassment, relief and anger swirling in it to name a few, he knew when to be serious. We probably still haven't forgiven each other completely, especially since this is _us_ we're talking about, and things were still a bit strained and awkward, but that didn't matter right now.

He gently rubbed some ointment onto my wounds and helped changed the bandages around my torso. We had a hard time trying to wipe away all the blood from my wings with washcloths without jostling them too much, but it was doable, and those too were wrapped in gauze. He even added new bandages around my arms to the cuts that got irritated, and in the end he told (forced) me to get some sleep for the rest of the day.

"I'll wake you up for dinner." He told me, shifting the ice pack on my knee after he made me lie down sideways in bed atop the covers. I quickly got up again, not wanting to just stay here, but he held my shoulders and pushed me down carefully until my head rested on my pillows.

He tucked a wavy lock of my hair behind my ear from where he stood beside my bed, and he bent down to kiss me on my lips before leaving my room.

I was tired and I was weary, but it took me at least an hour to fall asleep. I knew I had a lot to think about, but there were only two things that stood out in my head at the moment.

I couldn't help but wonder if that was all he really had to say to me, and more importantly…

Why did that last kiss taste like goodbye?

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**So…that's that. :)**

**Hopefully you all got why Fang was such a chatterbox.** I totally understand if you think he's OOC – yeah, he kinda is – but the reason for that is mentioned anyways and I didn't want anyone to be confused. If you still are though, ask me. And he's only spoken about 15 lines ever since Max came back, so it's about time he piped up. All that pent-up emotions were bound to explode sometime.

**OMGosh. **So I just enrolled for next school year and I got my books. I can't believe I have 5 Math books. F-I-V-E. One Trigonometry, two Geometry and two Advanced Algebra. I feel like I'm gonna die. What the hell are we learning next year anyways that's going to need 5 books?

**Question of the chapter: What's something you do when you're bored? Or, what're your bad habits?**

Me? Well, I used to bite and rip out the white part of my nails (very unhealthy, I know), but now I mostly knock my fingers. You know that thing when you press your phalanges and there's that popping sound it makes. I also bite the skin on my lip a lot – I look really ridiculous doing it, and my lips always end up cracking, splitting and bleeding. And… I twirl my hair, but I try as much not to, because I look like a total ditz when I do. Not pretty. :|

**So what's something you do when you're bored?**

**I expect at least 14 reviews this time.** Please show this story some lovin'. ;)

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	38. Completely Normal

May 30, 2011 (4:34am)

So umm…hi.

Much appreciation to **MaxXFang-TogetherForever**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **Eurwen de Vrill**, **AnikaandAj**, **fireflies371**, **Max**, **Rhaksha Ora**, **great**, **volleychik12**, **Hi**, **maximumpotter101**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **Birdwatched**, **SharpestSatire**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **CoffeeHouseGirl274** and **I'm waiting** for reviewing. I'm so sorry for not responding to some of you guys, as you may have already noticed that there is something wrong with the reply link. :(

Special thanks to **fireflies371**, **Iced-Tea-XD** and **Stargazer-Look4Me **for being the lovely readers and reviewers that you are. Really. I don't think I've ever thanked you enough, _so this chapter's for you guys._ :)

I'm not going to go into my excuses, but I've been having badminton practice as well as committee and org fund-raisers and meetings. I didn't think I'd be this busy. So, if you didn't catch my drift, I might not update next week. I'll most likely only be able to get one chapter up before my school starts. (Holy crap, school starts in 15 days. DX)

**I apologize in advance** for the undertone of crapiness in this chapter. Writing doesn't come so easily for me these days and you might notice it seems a bit…forced.

**Pay attention to detail, guys. And I still hope you enjoy chapter 38. :)**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

When my eyes first opened, they were met with the bright green blinking numbers of 7:43 on my bedside clock. I decided to get up then, even if I was still weary, knowing that we usually ate dinner at 8pm.

Let me rephrase that: Knowing that dinner was usually _ready_ by 8pm. We never really ate dinner all together anymore.

At this point in time, if I had known what was about to go down in the kitchen in a few minutes, I would've been well on my way to intercept any one of them. Whether it was meeting Gazzy halfway towards the kitchen, or annoying Iggy to cook dinner faster, maybe we'd face a different turn of events. Well that, or I would've jumped behind the leather couch to take cover.

During this time, I made my way jadedly throughout the house, my body on autopilot as I dragged my feet forward thoughtlessly. I eventually made it to the kitchen when my senses registered the mouth-watering aroma that could only come from Iggy's cooking, and just the scent of whatever masterpiece he was making brought me back to reality.

"Hey Igs, what was the doctor's verdict?" I asked casually, coming to stand beside him on front of the kitchen stove. Leaning against the marble counter, I could slightly make out the vegetables he was stirring in the pot from the corner of my eye. Never interfering, in fear of burning the whole house down, just watching.

"I see Sleeping Beauty has awoken from her slumber. Or rather, hear." He smirked. "Well doc said I'm completely fine now. He was really shocked by the quick recovery; he looked like he was gonna shit bricks or something. Well that's what Gazzy told me. The strange thing is, there's no mark left from the bullet. I guess we _are_ pretty indestructible." He said arrogantly, pretending to flip hair over his shoulder with the flick of his wrist, even though his strawberry blond hair wasn't long enough to reach his shoulders.

I chuckled at his statement while I made my way to the fridge, realizing only then how thirsty I was from my long nap. Just as I was about to kick the fridge door shut, Iggy wailed, "_Waaaaaiiiitt!_", and asked me to get him the all-purpose cream.

It took me a long time to find it, especially since I normally steered clear from the kitchen in general. About three minutes have passed until my eyes finally spotted the carton, and I bent down to reach for it.

"Dude, are you just standing there on front of it? 'Cause if you don't plan on entering the fridge, I suggest you close the door." He said, still mixing the ingredients in the pot without turning around. I didn't miss the sarcasm in his tone but I refrained from shooting him the bird, knowing that it was going to be wasted anyway.

"Someone's cranky he wasn't allowed in the Fridge Club…" I said in a sing-song voice, and since I was feeling evil just then, I chucked the cream carton at his head.

Of course, he was able to turn around and catch it in his hands like we were just playing a friendly game of baseball. Tearing the tab off the container, he proceeded to pour out the contents into the pot, completely emptying the carton with his fingers.

"_Ugh._ Cream with carrots and beans? Are you sure you know what you dumped in there?" I said, coming to stand next to him again.

He began to explain the intricacies and balance of the flavors in his soup, and I was so absorbed with bickering with him that I didn't notice Gazzy enter the kitchen until we heard him groan.

I whipped around to ask him what's wrong just as he took a seat on one of the kitchen island's stools, and when I got a glimpse of his face, I gasped at his appearance.

The Gasman, whose skin tone was a faint tan to match his spiky blond hair, was unnaturally pale and sickly white in the bright lights of the kitchen. There were light grey semicircles etched underneath his eyes, and his lips were set into a hard line. A thin coating of sweat glistened on his forehead, and I observed the way he tried to refrain from trembling, still the trouper I knew who didn't want anyone to see him weak or helpless.

Unluckily for him, he was bad at hiding these kinds of things from me.

I rushed forward immediately, incapable of understanding how he looked so ill. None of us ever got sick; was he going to start getting headaches and nose bleeds for no reason like me?

"Gazzy, what's wrong? Are you sick? Did you eat something, or did you-"

"_I don't feel so good…_" he said blearily, slumping in his seat with a shaky sigh.

"Did Angel explain to you about the birds and the bees?" I asked him with wide eyes, "Because I swear, I told her she _wasn't-_"

I was instantly cut off when my hands on his shoulders flew up to his forehead to check his temperature, and the immense heat emanating from him scorched my palm, making me yelp and jump back from shock.

"Shit, Gazzy, _you're really hot!_" I exclaimed, shaking my hand to cool it off.

Either Iggy was trying to lighten the mood or he decided to be an ass just then as he began to spaz with rambunctious laughter, unable to continue cooking as he placed his hands on his knees and chortled. I'd go with the ass theory.

"_Snap!_ Does anybody here know how to tame a wild beast? Because I think we just found ourselves in the presence of a _cougar!_" Iggy hollered, completely ignorant of the fact that his brother looked like crap right behind him.

On any other day I would've retorted back something witty without skipping a beat, but this was serious and I wasn't really in a joking mood. I whacked the back of his head strong enough that he almost face-planted in his soup, before I strode around the island and started opening cabinets to look for medicine.

"I think Gazzy's got a fever. Where did you place the medicine in the kitchen? I thought mom placed it here?" I said, tiptoeing to peer into the cabinets built high against the walls.

Motherly instincts took over and I shot into action, my one concern at this moment being Gazzy. It was only natural that I worry for him, seeing as I raised him as my own. It was all the more terrifying because we've never gotten sick, and I had no idea what to do.

"But we don't get sick." Iggy said, speaking my thoughts, his voice tinged with confusion as his sightless eyes stared in my general direction.

"Just tell me where you placed it, Iggy." I was started to get frustrated, worry and panic the only thing on my mind. I knew Gazzy talked and ate normally this morning, polishing off eight pancakes within a few minutes and chatting with Nudge and Total like any other day. How did he get so sick within a few hours, and why didn't anybody notice this earlier?

"Third to the last drawer on the kitchen island." Iggy said, and I practically flew over there and tore the drawer out with my haste.

I didn't normally know how to care for someone with a fever, so I grabbed as many promising pills as I could, reading their labels quickly and producing a tiny stack of tablets. I even included vitamins to the pile, just in case it could help fight off the sickness, whatever it was.

"Here. Drink these." I handed the medicine over to Gazzy and slid a glass of water towards him on the marble counter.

Turning around again to face Iggy, I started spouting out orders in typical Max fashion. "Iggy, call my mom from the clinic. Tell her Gazzy's sick, and that I need her to come home early. Finish making dinner; I'll carry Gazzy to his room." I told him, picking up the cordless phone from beside the ornate flower display near the entrance and coming to place it in Iggy's hands.

I was too consumed with giving Iggy instructions that I was stupid not to notice Gazzy beginning to convulse behind us, his teeth chattering loudly despite how hot his body temperature was. I didn't know what was happening to him until the glass he was gripping slipped and shattered to the floor with ear-splitting volume, and only then did I give my whole attention to him.

But we were too late.

Too late did we both turn around to check on Gazzy as my gaze fell on the blazing inferno that reached out to scorch us, the bright flames flickering dangerously close to our flesh as we held up our hands and screamed.

Now I was starting to get used to handling pain. Considering what I went through that afternoon and the past couple of days made me practically an expert.

The feeling of burning was familiar on my skin, the heat of the fire attacking too fast and too much of my skin that I couldn't help but shriek. I wasn't much of a damsel in distress, but I was too shocked at this unexpected turn of events.

But then that only lasted for a second.

With my eyes closed, I felt the fire lick my left arm with an unbearable sensation. My body stiffened for the full impact of the pain, mentally preparing myself for another round of scarring and wounds, but then it was suddenly gone and I was falling, an unseen force pressing against my shoulders to push me back.

The feeling of falling, even if it was something as simple as slipping or jumping from a greater height and starting to plummet, was blissful in the milliseconds I was suspended in the air.

I didn't know what made me slip, didn't get to see what happened with my closed eyes, but I knew I was filled with content that I no longer felt the searing pain on my arm. Falling was so much better than getting burned, I faintly noted in the back of my head.

And then I hit the ground with enough force for me to suck in a breath of immense suffering.

I fell on my mangled wings first, then my bruised and wounded back, and then finally slammed the back of my head against the ground, my teeth rattling inside my mouth from the impact.

I swallowed my cries of pain thickly down my throat and snapped my eyes open, blinking back the tears and blurriness that threatened to take over.

I felt horribly nauseated, ready to vomit, but the leader in me told me to suck it up immediately and appraise the situation. With my head still swimming, I was able to take note of an arm draped loosely across my torso, the weight of a leg over mine.

Craning my neck, I looked up to see a figure right next to me, and blinking my eye some more made me process that it was Fang sprawled on the ground beside me. His position slightly covering my body was evident with a protective fierceness, but I soon found out that it wasn't enough to keep me from harm.

The biting heat still lingered on my left shoulder, my skin bright pink with irritation. The sleeve of my shirt was completely burnt through, the edges black and crisp. When I looked over to take in Fang' injuries, I noticed that his right shoulder was singed as well, a much bigger patch seen through the burnt hole in his shirt's sleeve. The fire seemed to have reached his shoulder blade too from the faint welts, but it was nothing too extreme that we haven't faced before.

The silence in the room was perplexing. Another wave of dizziness washed over me and I closed my eyes to try to gather my bearings. Turning on my side on the floor to try to get to my feet, I expected shrieks and exclaims from Iggy or Gazzy. I knew they were there too. Did I bust my eardrums, or were they too taken aback by what happened? I didn't even _know_ what happened. Were they hurt? Did the fire get to Gazzy too?

I rolled into a crouch and groaned from the throbbing in my head. I clutched my skull in my hands for a moment before finally forcing myself to assess the damage.

But when I opened my eyes again…_there was none._

To say I was dumbstruck would have been an understatement. I couldn't comprehend what I was seeing, my mind processing my thoughts at such a sluggish pace.

I felt Fang rousing beside me, but I was too busy staring at a wooden chair, the dark wood of its legs right in front of me. Looking left and right, I took in the fact that there were more of these chairs, four on each side of a large, grand dining table, the whole set matching with neat and pristine perfection.

Then I noticed Ella was there too, when I saw her rushing forward to me and started babbling a string of words I couldn't hear. _Wait_ - she wasn't in the kitchen with us. There were forks and knives in her hand as she bent next to me, still talking gibberish.

Picture frames hung on the wall, displaying the abstract art that my mom loved so much. The walls that were littered with art work was a pastel, avocado green, the only room in the ground floor that looked _so-_

Dinning room.

I was in the dinning room, where Ella would always set the table for nine, even though we didn't all eat dinner at the same time.

But how did I end up in the next room when I was in the kitchen just a few minutes ago? I was talking to Iggy about Gazzy, standing right on front of the stove.

I backtracked what went down in slow motion, trying not to leave out any details to figure things out. Instructing Iggy, facing Gazzy, screaming from the fire that was rushing forward…

Fang wasn't there, and yet he was beside me now, pressing the heels of his palms to his temples from a headache. I was right _on front_ of the stove with Iggy, but here I am in the dinning room, facing the dinning table.

I replayed the scene again in my head like a movie, remembering how I felt something shove me away from the flames in time so that only my shoulder got burned. I was pondering how amazing the timing was, and then something else occurred to me…

"Max," I could finally hear Ella now as if from afar, as she helped me stand up. "What happened? What's wrong?"

What's wrong was that I was wasting my time just standing here when there were other more pressing matters at the moment, an important someone that I should've thought of before even myself.

A flashback replayed in my head, my eyes staring into milky dark blue ones as I sternly explained my instructions. His face filled my mind, with the fringe of his strawberry blond hair styled in an upwards flick and the rest of his boyish features set with determination. I committed his appearance to memory right before we turned around. Right before the fire took over…

"_Iggy._" I said under my breath with startling horror, and I harshly pushed aside Ella to head for the kitchen. It didn't matter that I still didn't understand how I ended in the dinning room, because Iggy and Gazzy were still in the kitchen and could possibly be roasting like fried chicken at this very moment. (Pun not intended.)

I rounded the corner and reached the swinging door within seconds, taking in the scene as quickly as my foggy brain could process.

Gazzy was still sitting on his stool, his body facing towards the huge fire that lit the stove. His back was towards me, but I could see that he was shaking; his hands raised palms up as they trembled uncontrollably. Iggy was splayed on the floor near the stove, face down on the ground and unmoving. The right side of his body was charred the color of bright pink, and his clothes were singed and smoking with tiny flames.

I felt my heart drop down to my stomach at the sight, but I shook my head and immediately took charge, already striding towards Gazzy as I barked orders.

"Fang, get Iggy. Ella, the fire!" I shouted to them, knowing that they followed behind me from the dinning room. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ella dart into the pantry to get the fire extinguisher, and as I clutched Gazzy by his sides to carry him to the sink, I saw Fang dragging an unconscious Iggy across the room away from the lit stove.

The adrenaline rush was enough for me to lift a 50-something pound kid effortlessly, even though his whole body was painfully burning my fingers.

I didn't know how I knew exactly what to do, but I just went with the first thoughts that came to mind and didn't fight it.

I dropped Gazzy to his feet on front of the metal sink and thrust his hands in, flicking open the faucet to cool his hands down. Steam rose as the cold water made contact with his flesh, and he just stood taut there, his huge blue eyes staring at his hands with the worst look of mixed shock and dread on his face.

I stood beside him for what seemed like the longest time, staying with him incase he needed anything and knowing that he shouldn't be left alone. In the background I could hear a spraying sound, indicating that Ella was killing the flames with the extinguisher successfully. And looking over my shoulder, I could see Fang tearing Iggy's shirt from its seared ends to avoid him getting injured or burned further, his fingers swift with precision to avoid touching any of his wounds.

When Gazzy's hands stopped steaming, I shut the tap and clutched his hands in mine, panting audibly from the scare he gave me.

"Are you okay now?" I asked him, trying to get my breathing in check.

He yanked his hands out of mine with a gasp and looked down at his feet, unable to face me. His eyes were still bugged, I could tell, and thought I was just expecting a shake or a nod of his head, he spoke up, his voice hoarse and quiet. "I-I'm fine…but I don't think Iggy is."

I whipped around again to face Iggy and Fang a few feet away from us, preparing myself for the onslaught of emotions. I was about to go to them but suddenly hesitated, the sight of them making me cock my head to the side in confusion.

Iggy was still laying flat on his back on the floor, his wings being crushed beneath the weight of his chest. At first I thought there was something really wrong with him, with the way his breathing was so slow and calm, but then I started to realize that that was his normal breathing pattern. Even from this distance I could see his foggy blue eyes, staring straight at the ceiling, unblinking. He wasn't unconscious.

Fang was leaning his back on the kitchen cabinets beside Iggy's body, his face as expressionless as always though I knew there was a lot on his mind.

The scene was so surreal, especially after what went down a few minutes ago. They looked as they did when they would hang out in the entertainment room (yes, they always looked this high as heck whenever it was just the two of them for some reason), expect without the chairs and the carpet surrounding them. Why wasn't he helping Iggy or something? What the _hell_ was going on?

I rushed to them and fell on my knees on the other side of Iggy, brushing back the hair on his forehead and looking him straight in the eyes even though he couldn't see.

"Iggy? Iggy, are you okay? Can you move?" My voice shook with worry.

"Max, wait. Look-" He tried grabbing my wrist but I pulled back and quickly turned to Fang.

"We'll have to move him. We can probably carry him to the next room and I-I'll call my mom. She'll know what to do." I instructed, already imagining all the horrible welts and burns that covered Iggy's body. I could patch up some of them before mom comes home, but I wasn't really sure how to deal with the really big ones. How could Iggy be so chill at a time like this?

"Max, look-" Iggy started again and tried grabbing my fingers, but I turned away from him and brushed off his words. He could say he was fine all he wants and try to be such a tough guy, but I wasn't having it.

I was about to get up and help Fang carry Iggy, but Fang was just looking at me like an idiot, and just before I lifted my knee to stand, Iggy shrieked. "God dammit Max! _Look at me!_"

I was so shocked by Iggy's outburst that I did actually look down at him. At first I stared at his face, at his angular features and his blue eyes that could've been cobalt had they not been glazed over. But looking further, I saw a patch of burnt skin the color of light pink that marred the edge of his jaw, the edges of the wound beginning to scab.

Now I've experienced all sorts of burns throughout my life to know which ones were fresh and which ones were a few days old. In fact, I'd be lying if I told you I didn't used to name them when I was younger and count the days until the scabs and scars would go away.

The wound that I was looking at right now seemed about 3 days old, and right before my very own eyes, I was _literally_ seeing it heal before me.

I stared with wonder as the bracelet-sized burn connecting to his neck turned a shade darker now, the sienna edges working its way towards the center like a swarm of ants closing in on their food.

Okay, gross analogy, but that's really how it looked like.

My head swiveled around to study the rest of his body, and all his other wounds too, were already reduced to maroon and dark brown scars and scabs. Judging by these turn of events, I'd estimate that these scabs would fall off by tonight, and in the morning there'd be nothing left at all from today but memories.

Well that, and a shell-shocked Gazzy, a still injured Fang and Max, a messy kitchen, and a melted heap of what used to be the stove. So I guess that was a lot of evidence.

I collapsed back on the heels of my palms with an exhalation of disbelief, staring back and forth at Fang and Iggy.

Fang, for some reason, was trying to avoid my eyes – something that made me wary and plan to question him later. Iggy on the other hand had a confused expression on his face, making me think that his mind didn't process what had happened as quickly as I did. Well, I'd probably be as surprised as him had our roles been reversed.

Ella decided to come running up to us then, a crazed look in her eyes with her dark hair pasted to her face. Her reaction was similar to mine as she fell on her knees and grabbed Iggy's right arm gently, just about ready to take into account the damage.

I tried tucking my over-grown fringe behind my ear and wordlessly stared at her fumble and panic, Iggy trying to calm her down. It was useless to intervene, knowing that she'd soon figure things out on her own.

She wasn't listening to Iggy though and looked about to hyperventilate, clueless as to how to deal with this. Gazzy was already in shock, slumped somewhere behind me near the sink; we didn't need another one.

"Ells. Ella, he's fine. We're all fine." I reached out to grasp her, feeling worn out and groggy myself. A new headache, something I haven't felt since the parking lot incident, began to creep onto the insides of my temples, and I clenched my jaw to subdue it.

"If there's something you should be worrying about, it's the fact that we no longer have any dinner." I said, and all our heads whipped around to take in the exploded pot of soup on the ground with its contents spilled across the tiles. The five roasted chickens left on the counter beside the stove looked undecipherable and inedible in its rectangular glass Pyrex as well – nothing left of the dinner that Iggy cooked for us.

At the sight of what was left of our dinner, Iggy started to laugh; for what? I don't know. But then a chuckle soon made its way out of my mouth at the sheer ridiculousness of the situation – that the three men in my life all developed new abilities _at the same time_ for goodness' sake! – because of course only this would happen in _my_ life.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The three pizza boxes laid unopened on the coffee table in the center of the entertainment room, the whole flock's appetite completely diminished from the sudden turn of events. They knew three pizzas wouldn't have been enough for six mutant bird-kids and a teenage girl, but they couldn't indulge themselves in stuffing their faces. Not with the hulking-huge elephant in the room that was practically suffocating them with all its confusion and complexity.

One by one, the three eldest flock members explained their sides of the story, taking into account every single detail of what happened and what they saw. Each perspective was different, but it only summed up to one result, one they were all afraid to admit out loud.

Gazzy, the fourth witness from the scene, refused to talk at all. He stood the farthest away from everyone else, his back against the wall near the arched exit. Everyone had to figure out what exactly happened, hence the meeting, but they all knew he wanted to be anywhere else instead of here. What he'd done, no matter how inadvertent his actions were, almost cost the life of another family member – his best friend, Iggy.

They all knew he would've died.

They all knew that it was Gazzy who had started the fire, his hands accidentally raised towards Max and Iggy as it turned itself on. That Fang, who upon entering the kitchen subconsciously invisible, was able to predict what was going to happen and rushed to tackle Max, going through the walls in the process which landed them in the dining room. And Iggy, who was still standing on front of the stove, got hit by the flames harshly and passed out on the floor.

And yet he was sitting on the arm of the couch now looking as healthy as a horse, albeit the scabs and healing burns on his pale flesh. The wounds looked painful, but Iggy knew he would take cuts and bruises and scrapes any day in exchange for his life.

Angel was able to deduce what had happened from the boys' minds before any of the explanations. She tried comforting Gazzy when she first saw him, but he just shrugged off her hand and isolated himself. He didn't want to be comforted; not right now.

Nudge was frozen with shock that ran all-throughout her body. She was seated stiffly on the floor with her legs crossed, and for once in her life she was at a loss for words. Words were not enough to express the emotions and thoughts running through her mind – wondering how they were all doing, how they suddenly developed new abilities, _why_ they suddenly developed new abilities, worry for all of them, and a million more thoughts running through her mind so fast she isn't able to comprehend what they were.

Across the room, Max tried catching Fang's eyes while she patched up Iggy's shoulder blade with a thin layer of gauze. Max deemed it useless to heavily treat Iggy's wounds at the rate they were clotting.

Ella was doing the same for Fang's shoulder; as Max determinedly stared at Fang's direction, it was like he could feel her gaze on him. He lifted his head for a split second and made eye-contact with Max's brown ones, but in the next he looked away, an imperceptible expression on his face. At this, Max grew shocked and confused, unable to decipher what he was thinking.

She had hoped she could receive a fragment of reassurance from him, but maybe they were all still too shocked by what happened. Maybe Fang was more affected then she was, and needed more comfort than she did.

A slumped Angel on the armchair looked between Max and Fang, a solemn expression on her face. Her composure was slowly breaking, feeling so lost and pressured by everything. If there was just one more thing that would break her little heart, the dam of her apathetic, headstrong façade would burst with a flood of emotions. Everyone's thoughts were overwhelming her; Gazzy's and Fang's being the strongest.

Gazzy's emotions of distraught were practically screaming in her head, making it difficult for her to separate one thought from the other. They were all scared, and confused, and worried, but it was Gazzy's thoughts that bounced around her head like haywire, making her want to rip off her hair and shout in frustration. But more than anything, she felt empathetic towards her older brother because she was going through what he was going through, could feel the guilt and fear that was eating him up.

Angel so badly wanted to tell him comforting words and hug Gazzy without him having to pretend to be so strong about this. She wanted him to know she was there for him, but he'd ignored her attempts. She wanted to hold his hand much like when they were younger, but Angel knew deep down that she was afraid of getting burned by him.

Fang's thoughts, on the other hand, were too foggy to grasp and study; she was just getting bits and snippets of his thoughts. Reading them quickly told her that Fang was contemplating something deeply, and when she further delved into their meanings she found out that something he was planning to do was going to hurt Max.

"_Fang…_" Angel whispered weakly, her voice breaking.

He didn't respond. With his eyes still downcast staring at the carpeted floor, the concentration on his face made it seem like he didn't hear anything at all. The only indication that he'd heard her was the twitch of his jaw muscle; subtle and quick, but it definitely confirmed Angel's suspicions.

By then, Max couldn't stand the choking ambience anymore. At first she wanted someone to speak up and ask questions, but Fang's whispered name seemed to slice the air, and suddenly she knew then that she didn't want to talk about this without everyone having the chance to think things through.

She knew it was a lot to take in – she understood that it would take a while to adjust to a new ability, or the fact that Gazzy had almost killed Iggy. Since no one was initiating a conversation, she decided to go to bed. They all had a long day.

Snapping the tabs to the first aid kit shut, Max stood up straighter and put her hand on Iggy's good shoulder. Even something as simple as standing straight sent daggers throughout her legs and shoulders, but she bit her lip and refused to whine about it. The last thing they all needed was more drama, and it was her fault anyways that she went ballistic that afternoon when Fang went after her.

That episode felt like it happened a lifetime ago.

"You okay, Ig?" Max squeezed his un-damaged shoulder reassuringly, and he nodded back at her with a faint smile on his face.

"Well, it's getting late, and since there are no questioned asked, I'm going to bed. In fact, a good night's sleep might do us all good." She said and headed towards the hallway.

Right before she exited the room, she passed by Gazzy leaning on the wall to her left. She was just about to smile at him too, but when her eyes met his, they were filled with something else. His bright blue eyes burned with accusations, and he couldn't take _not_ admitting the truth, nor Max's carefree attitude anymore.

He pushed off the wall and stood straight, hands clenched at his sides. He couldn't believe no one was seeing what he was seeing, that no one _truly_ cared about what just happened.

"So that's just it?" He snapped, his eyes narrowing in a way that made him look threatening and much older than his years. "You're just going to go to bed like it doesn't matter? Like it was no big deal?"

"_Gaz-_" Max tried getting through to him, immediately figuring out why he acting like this, but he wouldn't let her. Gazzy was so pissed right now that he wanted to punch something.

"_I almost killed Iggy and all you care about is getting your frickin' beauty sleep?_" he yelled, breathing heavily.

"_Gazzy._" Iggy warned this time, but even he couldn't suppress Gazzy's bubbling emotions that were spilling over.

"No, don't even!" he waved his hand back at Iggy, his sole concentration on Max, the person he believed was so cold and selfish. "_I can't believe you!_ While Iggy's bruised and banged up, you're thinking of sleep? _What the hell, Max!_ We have to do something! We have to help Iggy! Just… _just do something, dammit!_ We have to…we just gotta…" he stuttered towards the end, feeling chocked up and weak at that moment.

"Gazzy, calm down…" Max tried again, but he quickly retorted back saying, "Don't tell me to calm down!"

Max was losing her patience – not that she's had a lot to begin with. She was tired, and in pain, with a headache building up at the back of her skull, and she just wanted to rest, but she had to deal with Gazzy first. The flock comes before yourself, after all.

She easily knew why he was acting this way – simply because he was scared.

This wasn't some prank or hoax that they could take back; Iggy could've really died back there if he hadn't had his new accelerated healing ability. She could only imagine a quarter of the guilt and fear he was feeling if she'd just been about to kill her best friend, Fang. That's something you could never take back.

Gazzy was afraid he'd cause more casualties, and that was understandable. His power was strong and dangerous, but it wasn't something that couldn't be improved. He just had to know that. He just had to accept what had happened and move on from this.

"Well then what _do_ you want to do about it, Gaz?" Max tried to ask as nicely as she could, her voice gentle. She spun around and addressed her family, still speaking in hushed tones. "Look, before we do something about this, we have to think about it. All of us. It's a lot to take in. I mean, I'm still trying to process what happened and _I_ was there. If we continue to stay here any longer, we're just going to end up arguing about whose fault this was and point fingers at each other when it was no one's fault, alright?"

Max then faced Gazzy again, making sure her eyes held his and conveyed the meaning of her words through them. "_No one's._ I don't want you beating yourself about this because it could've been any one of us, okay? It's not your fault you developed that ability."

Gazzy bowed his head, afraid that Max would see everything. He knew he shouldn't have shouted at Max but it just happened. He had no control of his emotions at the moment. Even now he could feel his eyes brimming with hot tears but he refused to let them fall; he was nine years old. Iggy and Fang didn't cry when they were nine so he shouldn't too.

"But it's my fault if someone gets hurt because of it."

Max took a cautious step forward, palm outstretched with the promise of comfort and acceptance. "Gazzy, that's why we're going to help you. We'll train in the backyard, test out the extent of your abilities as well as the hazards. We can control this, Gaz, it's just a matter of practice."

"Yeah!" Nudge decided to pipe in, smiling her brightest smile in the hopes of lightening the atmosphere. "Like, I almost decapitated Fang when I was still practicing my ultra magical metal summoning powers on knives, but we're still tight. Right Fang?"

"Of course, Nudge." Fang said sarcastically though everyone could see the nearly indiscernible smirk on his face.

"Look, I'll even be generous. You can practice on me, since y'know, I'm immortal!" Iggy's booming voice resonated with humor, though Gazzy's wide eyes begged to differ. Iggy was all smiles while the rest of the flock sighed with exasperation and annoyance. Only Iggy…

He finally got the message from the sudden silence and the sound of Angel facepalm-ing. "Still too early to be making jokes?" He grinned innocently. Ella, who was still standing behind Fang, looked like she was tempted to smack him, but that wouldn't help any. "No frickin' duh."

Max then took that as her cue to embrace Gazzy. The flock wasn't very affectionate in general, but when it's called for, Max knew she wouldn't hesitate to carry them, or hold their hand, pat the space between their wings, or tell them she loved them.

"C'mere!" She said teasingly, but Gazzy backed up even more and held his hands up to keep her at bay.

"Max, don't! I might hurt you!" he exclaimed, desperate and determined not to harm anyone anymore. But Max pushed his hands away, and then she was hugging him, holding him tightly in her arms and brushing back his hair like she used to when he was five years old.

He tried pushing her off at first, even punching her in the stomach in the process, but she was just as adamant about quelling his feelings of self-loathing and false contempt. She held him until his body went flaccid, the fight going out of him, and he hugged her back just as fiercely, burying his face onto the side of her arm.

She didn't let go even if her back was throbbing from his wiry grip, or the fact that she was honestly afraid of Gazzy. The moment he reciprocated by wrapping his arms around her waist, she knew that he needed someone to hold onto. No matter how many times he'd deny their comfort or pretend that he didn't want it, that was really all he needed. Someone to reassure him that all is well and everything was going to be okay.

"No you won't, Gaz." She whispered to him, half-smiling at the thought. Things weren't completely fine amongst the flock but they were getting there. She wanted to tell him that there was nothing left of her for him to hurt, that she pretty much had no more heart to break, but that was just her bitterness talking. Gazzy needed his older sister now.

"You're not going to hurt me."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Surprisingly, I had just enough energy to drag my worn out body to the family room, fingering my lips as I did so. I was tired from my head to my toes, but this was the kind of exhaustion that sleep couldn't cure. I was desperately hoping that reading would solve this problem, and I was willing to try anything that could help.

I was compelled to drop by Gazzy's room and see how he was holding up, but I knew that Angel and Iggy were with him at the moment, still trying to placate his despondent demeanor; his sister and his best friend were just the right people to lift his spirits.

Rounding the corner, I reached the family room, suddenly being greeted by the bright yellow walls that _clearly_ expressed the mood I was in.

Now on any normal day, the family room was definitely one of my favorites in this whole house; it came third place, right after my bedroom and the kitchen. It had three walls, all of which were painted a cheery yellow. There were no doors; the supposed fourth wall the entire entrance to the room, the space a sudden indent on the wall. A flat screen TV hung on the right side with couches and chairs positioned on front of it. There were also your typical displays of picture frames and vases towards the bookshelf at the back, as well as a second bookcase for DVDs, video games and CDs.

The reason we all called it the family room was because this was where we all usually hung out before and just talked. The television set and game consoles were practically props on display; my family and I would gather in here right before we went to bed and talk about our days, jokes we'd heard from our friends, and so much more.

But now since everyone was busy doing their own thing, occupied with their own business, it was just another room we all passed to get to our bedrooms. There was no more family to fill the space.

I made a beeline for bookshelf, coming to stand on front of it and running my fingers along the spines of the books.

Okay, Max fun fact of the day: I _actually_ enjoy reading.

I know, it sounds impossible. I'm not even completely literate and now I drop the bombshell of being a bookworm. But ever since I got my hands on Harper Lee's masterpiece at the start of the school year (it was a requirement), I found stories…_interesting_. I'm not very high on the vocabulary scale, but coming across a word I don't understand gives me the initiative to look it up (hence why I'm the Word Queen; don't wear it out). And just the thought of other characters in other worlds going through hardships and obstacles makes me feel slightly normal, even if they were all just fiction.

Once I chose my novel, I strode towards the nearest couch and plopped down on it-

-only to realize in the next second that I had jumped onto Fang's chest rather hard.

His breath went out of him in an audible _woosh_ and I quickly scrambled off of him from shock.

"_Jesus!_" I exclaimed, my hand flying towards my heart. Fang was the last person I expected to see tonight, seeing as he was clearly avoiding and ignoring me.

See, awhile ago when the sob fest ended, I wanted to discuss what happened with Fang. I was still slightly confused about everything, and knowing Fang's eyes were wide open throughout the whole scene, I thought maybe I could get better answers from him.

_Instead_, I got a mumbled "We'll talk in the morning", a twitch of his jaw muscle that didn't even reach his eyes, and a brush of his hand on mine to loosen my hold on his upper arm.

That right there, my friends, is a little pain in the ass called rejection.

Composing myself, I instantly landed on the spot beside him as he moved into a sitting position, scratching the back of his head. He looked jaded and hazy, as though he didn't know what he was doing here in the first place. Being the good friend that I am, I gave him a few seconds to take in his surroundings, his eyes scanning the room briefly before finally landing on me.

"Nope, it's just Fang." He retorted with a half-smile, and it would have been funny, if it weren't for the fact that his eyes and his voice didn't exert enough effort to make it humorous.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" I asked, accidentally stammering since I was still reeling that I didn't notice him. "Were you just practicing your invisibility just then or…?" I trailed off, feeling stupid for asking such a lame question _and_ stammering, all in one statement. It was a new low for me.

He subtly nodded his head left and right. "Going in and out, getting the hang of it. There's a lot on my mind and I'm just…" He shrugged. "I need to clear some things in my head." Then he raised his eyebrow at me, a silent questioning, "You?"

"Couldn't sleep so I thought reading would help." I said, flipping the book in my hands to show him. His eyes scanned over the cover, and without any expression on his face he said, "'Pretty good book, though I prefer Full Tilt better. It's somewhere there." He jerked his head towards the bookshelf again as a way of pointing. I nodded awkwardly.

I fricken' nodded _awkwardly._

I couldn't understand why this conversation seemed so strained. At this moment, I felt so chocked up just talking to him, having to think of what I'm about to say before saying it.

It was incomprehensible why I felt so stilted and self-conscious around Fang, my other half.

I was hoping that this was because of what happened this afternoon and that it'll all go away by morning, but deep down inside I knew it was more than that. More than what my brain could ever conceive. Trepidation spread throughout my veins with urgency and alarm, but I refused to let it get to me, trying to act as naturally as I could.

It took me a moment to figure out what I'd do right now under normal circumstances before I leaned on his shoulder with a sigh, trying to act casual even though my movements felt stiff.

Fang's whole body tensed when my head landed on his shoulder, his reaction making me close my eyes tightly with fear. After about three seconds of this hold-your-breath silence, he gently pushed my head off and tilted his body to face me; I looked down at my lap and refused to meet his eyes.

"I'm gonna turn in now." He muttered, his voice tight. "'Night Max."

He caressed the side of my face before he pressed his lips to my forehead, and then he was across the room, steps away from rounding the corner.

Brooding Fang was definitely scaring me, but I couldn't understand how one second he was holding me as I cried and in the next he would avoid me at all costs. Maybe he'd tell me when he was ready but I couldn't take not knowing. We'd just made up; I wanted him to confide in me what was bothering him.

"_Wait._" I called out, my voice sounding a little shaky. Dammit.

He turned around to face me at the same time I stood up, both of our body's rigid. I was able to muster up enough courage to look him in the eyes to try and read him, only to meet his complete mask of reticence that seemed impenetrable. He was deliberately blocking me out.

"What's wrong?" I asked, my voice loud and clear that it seemed to echo and bounce off the yellow walls. I figured there was no point in beating around the bush anymore because it was obvious that there was no getting better if we didn't talk to each other to solve things. And if Fang was avoiding me, then it undoubtedly had something to do with me. We'd just talked a few hours ago; what could it possibly be this time?

"I'm tired, Max. I'll explain everything tomorrow." He said, exasperated, but something told me he wasn't really tired. He just wanted to get away.

I sighed. "Tomorrow doesn't make much of a difference from today, Fang. And we _just_ made up; if we're going to try to patch up our relationship, we should tell each other our thoughts, for starters."

His eyes suddenly filled with an spark of intensity I couldn't explain, staring straight into my own as he said, "Tomorrow _does_ make a difference. And I swear, it'll all be clear tomorrow. I need to just think things through."

I rolled my eyes. "For the love of all that is holy, _just tell me._ Tomorrow's in a few hours! Talking about it helps; if you could just tell me, I'll help you-"

And then he dropped the fricken' Hiroshima from out of nowhere, his tone scarily calm like we were talking about the goddamn weather.

"Max, I don't think we should be together." He said under his breath, but I heard every word he said as it left his lips. He was looking down at his shoes while I stared at him, my mouth slightly open.

It wasn't that I didn't process what he meant; I understood his words perfectly. Shock spread throughout my whole body, making me numb and cold especially at the tips of my fingers. I had to swallow and blink twice to gather my bearings, and even when I formulated something oh so witty in reply to leave him speechless, it came out raspy from my cotton-lined throat.

"_Huh?_" I breathed, taking a step back so that the back of my knees hit the coffee table.

That one word in itself made Fang's eyes meet mine without lifting his head, his face still imperceptible. I wasn't sure if I was just imagining things, but I thought I saw an inkling of sadness in his eyes, misinterpreting my reaction.

Probably thinking I didn't fully comprehend what he'd said, he repeated it again, his voice much louder now.

"I think we should break up."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**Didn't see that coming, did ya? **

**I think you already know** that I abso-fricken'-lutely _suck _at 3rd Person POV writing, so forgive me. :| I tried, I really did. And the scene afterwards sound so damn formal because whenever I write in 3rd Person it just ends up so…_formal_ that it affected the next scene as well. Ugh. I have to improve on that.

**For all of you who didn't follow my instructions, or maybe just because I didn't expound on it well enough**, Gazzy just developed _fire and heat manipulation_. Fang, who subconsciously developed _invisibility and intangibility_, walked in the kitchen unknowingly invisible (obviously), and was able to predict what was going to happen, resulting in him tackling Max and going through the walls and into the dining room. And Iggy, who didn't have the luxury to be tackled by Fang, got burnt to a crisp and should've died, but luckily, with his new-found ability of _accelerated healing_, his wounds patched up with the snap of his fingers. Comprende?

**And if you didn't deduce from previous explanations cause it might have been confusing too and I'm not sure if ya'll got it, **Max, who has _force field generation_ ability, _inadvertently_ creates a force field around her mind. She's so used to trying to block out Angel all the time that she built a wall around her thoughts when she'd developed it near the start. This explains why Angel doesn't know the problems she's going through, or her feelings well enough to know how hurt she was when Angel took over. There was even a little clue from chapter 5 – "_I had to make sure now that my neck would always be covered by my hair. No ponytails or braids… Dang it! I shouldn't think about it! ... When I looked at Angel, she had __a confused expression__ on her face but when she saw me staring at her, she smiled back, well…angelically._"

**So there you have it. :)**

**As I've previously mentioned in the above AN,** I'm struggling with my writing. I think I'll take a widdle tiny break and read some, try and get inspired with the things around me and just breathe.

**If you have anything to say **that might inspire me, song suggestions, concrit, advice, encouragement would be good, and all that wonderful goodness, review! :D

Let's not forget the question of the chapter: **Who can 'read your mind'?**

I mean this in the sense that this person knows you inside and out and can understand what you're thinking and how you feel with just eye contact, or a nudge. Anything. :) It doesn't have to be your best friend; it could be your boyfriend, a neighbor, or even your parents. (One of my friends is really close to her mum; it's so sweet.)

**As for me, **the person who understands me the most is my sister, Tori. She's been my roommate ever since we were in diapers so we often have late night conversations and such. We practically have our own language, and we literally make eye contact from the across the room when we share the same thought. It's creepy that we think alike so much. She understands me unconditionally, and I know I can tell her anything. The freaky thing is that we kinda look alike, even thought she's a few years older than me. :\ Well anyways, she's the Fang to my Max. (LOL.)

**Please review guys! And I hope I get a lot of song suggestions because I'm getting sick of my playlist. Preferably not something mainstream, if you please. :)**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	39. Better That We Break

June 14, 2011. Tuesday. (12:01am)

**Hey guys :)**

F*ck this. I feel like crap.

This chapter sounds like crap. My editing was crap. My writing in general turned to crap. This was just a cornucopia of crapola. Please tell me how I can fix my problem. What seems to be missing? Honestly.

In other news, my school starts tomorrow (technically today, since it's 12am). Summer wasn't long enough. I find out the school's bitch is my classmate this year. And I'm _so_ not ready.

Well enough about me.

Many thanks to **Eurwen de Vrill**, **Stargazer-Look4Me**, **volleychik12**, **fireflies371**, **AnikaandAj**,** murphymypup101**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **Um no to the heck**, **Rhaksha Ora**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **xxSurfingDreamsxx**, **JealousMindsThinkAlike**, **dancingonmytoes13**, **Birdwatched**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **Bethflower** and **SharpestSatire **for reviewing last chapter, you cool people. B)

And I'm dedicating this chapter to **maximumpotter101** for being my 300th reviewer. :D Thanks so much again! And thanks for all the song suggestions! Some were really fantastic. ;)

**Maroon 5**'s song '_Better That We Break_' is so fitting for this chapter, I just had to insert it here somewhere. :P Who loves Maroon 5? I nearly killed myself that I wasn't able to watch their concert here last May 23. :'( My favorite song is '_The Way I Was_' though; you should all check that out too. Go listen to the both of them!

**Anyways, enjoy chapter 39!**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It was silent for a while. For what seemed like a long while actually.

Here we were, Max and Fang, standing straight and facing each other. The furniture ceased to exist around me and I'd long dropped _Unwind_ from between my fingers. I knew we were only a few feet apart but the distance seemed infinite now more than ever.

My eyes blurred and dilated as I stared off into space, not focusing on anything as my body coursed with shock and panic. My parted lips felt the need tell him what was on in my mind, but no words came. I just couldn't believe this.

When my eyes finally landed on the figure on front of me, Fang, who was watching my reaction, closed his eyes and bit his lip, misinterpreting yet again what I really thought of this situation.

"Okay, that wasn't very eloquent."

"_I don't understand…_" I whispered after a few seconds, filled with disbelief. I felt so out of breath that I faintly wondered if he heard me.

"How do I explain this…" Fang started, sounding so flustered as he looked down at his feet. I didn't miss the almost indiscernible twitch of his jaw muscle, or the clench of his fist. He hated ever second of this… or was he just nervous?

"Max, I've been thinking about this since the parking lot incident. Not my reasons for siding with Angel; I already knew my answers then."

"So you've been thinking about splitting up with me all this time?" I questioned, taking this all in. I waited for him to answer but it was clear that his silence meant yes. And now it was only a matter of knowing… "_Why?_"

At that, Fang started pacing the length of the family room entrance, never lifting his head from the path he was making. My eyes followed his long, lean figure, my gaze almost analytical as he moved back and forth like a shadow come to life.

In a way, I didn't want him to admit the truth. I wanted him to stay as the quiet and always-calculating Fang I knew, but that was only really a façade he put up for the flock. He talked much more whenever it was just the two of us.

"I was only thinking of you." He blurted out, his words sounding louder in this empty room, and when he realized how ridiculous that statement sounded he shook his head, trying to start up again. "When Iggy got shot and they were trying to capture you, you were the only thing that mattered." He said, and I knew he was referring to that time in the parking lot. I was tempted to pipe up, tempted to add my say in this, but I knew if I interrupted now, he'd never be able to tell me why. So instead, I continued to follow the movements of his body.

"Max, we can't be together." He stared into my eyes as he said this, then immediately ducked his head again as he continued. "Not when we have others to think of. I was hoping maybe that was just that one instance, but tonight…"

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. And the more I listened to him, the lower my heart dropped down to my stomach. "I kept replaying what happened over and over in my head and I'm always left with the same question: _why didn't I save the both of you?_"

"Fang, you can't blame yourse-" I interjected. We didn't need another guilty flock member.

He quickly interrupted back. "I know it's no one's fault but I had a chance to grab the both of you. Iggy was _in_ my line of sight; I _saw_ him right there, but I only thought to save you. And we could've saved Gazzy all this trauma if I'd-"

Fang was too busy pacing the length of the room to notice that I'd walked across the family room during his tirade to stand right on front of him, forcing him to come to a halt and raise his head to look at me. Immediately, I clamped a hand over his mouth and smiled at him, a breathless laugh escaping my lips at the ridiculousness of the situation. Me, closing my hand over his mouth just to keep him from talking. It was utterly unheard of.

And yet absolutely _adorable._ Ever since we started dating, it was like he had to make certain I understood why he did the things he did, however unreasonable it seemed. He talked a lot more whenever it was just the two of us, and I loved the fact that he was opening up to me. Most especially when he needed to explain something, he'd start to babble uncontrollably; I'd watch his lips move and I'd hang onto ever word he said, memorizing the sound of his voice.

Though I was covering his mouth, I noticed the faint smile in his eyes.

"You know, that's why I don't talk much." he mumbled from beneath my palm, but I understood what he said.

"And I get it, Fang. I know what you mean." I told him, having to tilt my head back to look into his eyes. "It doesn't matter if we're not leader and second-in-command anymore; the flock always comes first. I get it. I mean, being with you is the _best_ feeling in the world, but when it comes right down to it we're both first and foremost members of a flock. We can't get distracted, and so long as the world isn't saved yet, we have to push our feelings aside."

I slowly retracted my hand over his mouth until it was clenched at my side, hating the truth of everything I said more than ever.

"I absolutely agree with you."

Why yes, dear readers. There was no screaming, or punching, or any choking as I shoved my fist down his throat. None of that.

Because unbeknownst to everyone else, I was planning on breaking up with him, too.

All the shock and panic that flooded my brain was due to the fact that I couldn't believe we were thinking the exact same thing, for the exact same reasons.

Remember when I'd said Fang's been on my mind a lot? Well this was that one thought and question that's been buzzing around in my head, especially when I was bed-ridden in the hospital a few days ago.

And maybe now you're wondering why. Or crying a river, or parading around your bedroom ecstatically, whichever one works.

You see, after the initial shock of developing a new power, I kept thinking about the things that went through my head. On my last day of school, I would space out during class and go through the thoughts that played in my mind – my body tensing before the fight, my internal battle when everyone seemed to need me, the pulsing headache that took over and suddenly finding myself kneeling on the ground.

My ability and its dangers constantly haunted me throughout the day, but going back to my thoughts beforehand…I remembered having to choose someone from my family.

That was the scariest thought for me – having to choose one of them, and in that moment, my power wasn't all that important anymore.

They flashed through my mind. My mom's desperate cries, Nudge's and Angel's weary but determined faces, and Fang, covered in blood but still punching and kicking fiercely, his jaw set. They were all so important to me; I knew that…and yet I still remember taking a step towards Fang during the battle.

I was choosing _Fang _over anyone else, and that was when I realized my mistake.

So ever since our mission in California, it was bothering me. My thoughts haven't gone far enough to begin planning my course of action as compared to Fang, but it was still in my mind. I still entertained the thought of breaking up with him. That was the one thought and question that popped up: Should I break up with him?

And now I finally knew the answer that yes. Yes, I should break up with him.

I hadn't realized my eyes were downcast until strong arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me against someone else's body, making me stumble on my feet and crash my head to rest on the crook of their shoulder. I stood rigid in his arms for a moment, before eventually wrapping my arms back around his waist, burying my face into his neck and feeling like I never wanted to let go.

Because this shouldn't be happening anyway.

I didn't cry, but I didn't know why I felt a torrent of emotions wash through me. It wasn't like he was leaving for 20 years or something; I'd see him in the morning. But there was just something about this goodbye that felt…wrong. Incomplete.

I held my breath as I felt every beat of his heart thumping in time with mine, but no matter how in sync we were, how the contours of his body fit so perfectly with mine, we could only be together when the timing was right. And as of late, we had so many other duties to attend to.

"I love you, Max. With all my heart." He told me, his lips right next to my ear. My mind froze for a second, realizing that this was actually the first time he's told me that straight out. Not jokingly or teasingly; the tone of his voice making me truly believe him.

"I love you too, Fang." I whispered in reply, because no sweet moment would be complete without the reciprocation. I hate to admit, but my voice sounded broken and feeble compared to Fang's conviction, and I hate all the more that throughout our relationship I was only able to tell him this now.

He pulled back, and since I was so absorbed in the moment I instantly missed the feeling of his body against mine. These were our last few moments together and I felt like we never had enough. I didn't want him to let go.

"I'm going to hold you to that," Fang said, his dark eyes boring into mine as he looked down at me. "'cause I know we're going to get our happily ever after."

He smiled though we both knew it was just a front. And we were going to stay hopeful, but I knew not all stories have fairytale endings.

So I gave him a short nod. He drew his arms back and stepped away. I gave him a pathetic half-smile. He turned to leave without another word.

And that was the end of that, and our relationship.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

So what do you expect me to be doing now?

Making a 'Fax' scrapbook in remembrance of our love? Binge-eating all my sorrows away by the tub of ice cream? Or maybe you'd imagine me curled up into a ball in the corner of my bathroom with my mascara and eye-liner (that seemingly came out of nowhere!) dragging down my cheeks as I blubbered like a lovesick mutant?

…

Okay, so it's pretty obvious it was none of the above. Give yourself a high-five.

The second Fang left the family room, I crashed onto the couch and tried falling asleep, though it would not come. I gave watching television a shot but nothing good was on. I attempted to get started on my book but the words swam before my eyes.

And since all my plans resulted in failure, this was how I ended up here, roaming the halls of the second floor.

Now that I wasn't possessed in a crazy haze, the halls didn't seem all that frightening anymore. Its similarities with the maze back at the School were a little disconcerting, but there were miniscule differences now upon closer inspection – the calming yellow lighting instead of the bright fluorescence, very few scattered art pieces that hung on the wall, and the corners and intersections didn't seem as harsh to me. It was all just my screwed-up mind playing tricks on me.

I didn't talk, or hum, or even think. I just watched as I placed one foot on front of the other, going in no particular direction.

'Cause I knew if I talked out loud, that would seem insane. And humming seemed inappropriate. And just thinking about it, or anything else really, would just muddle my thoughts with its conundrums and its deeper meanings. All that crap that I _didn't _need.

I could only concentrate on my slipper-clad feet, my bony toes lightly hitting the ground at a steady pace, that when they'd bumped into another pair of feet with my head bonking onto something hard, I felt completely disoriented.

"Max." the voice said. Righting myself, I had to look up to see who it was. It took me a while to put a name with his face, to match the startlingly deep blue eyes to the few I knew. Iggy.

"How'd you know it was me?" I asked, suddenly curious. He never mistook anyone for another, but I was really quiet just them. Was I actually just talking to myself then, giving away my identity? Or was it all just some scientific explanation about sound waves and whatnot? I'd always wondered how he did that…

"Your footsteps. Each person's sounds different."

My eyes widened. "Really? That's _so_ –"

"Yours sounds like an elephant's." He grinned smugly, the bastard.

"– not cool." I finished with a straight face. Then sarcastically, I spat, "Oh Iggy, your wit leaves me breathless."

"You know it." He winked back without skipping a beat, his sightless gaze perfectly align with mine.

Just what I needed: a blind satirical pyromaniac to keep me busy.

And I wasn't even sarcastic in the slightest just then.

Maybe Fate brought me to him because I couldn't get some goddamn rest for the life of me. He was just with Gazzy too, and I'd never been able to ask him how he was holdin' up. I could use the distraction, no matter how short…or daft it was.

"So how's the Gasman? Is he okay?" I questioned, my voice clearly taking on a serious note at the subject change. I figured Iggy noticed this too because he smiled deceptively pleasantly, coming to shove his hands into his pockets. I raised an eyebrow, wary.

"He's fine; just needed a few more reassurances 'is all. At first he kept blaming himself, the poor kid, but then I told him that this power would make lighting bomb fuses a lot easier and he started to perk up. Big bro to the rescue." He posed dramatically for his last statement, flexing his arm muscles (and he did have 'em, let me tell you) and I laughed, shaking my head.

"I swear, if he held his hand aflame against his ass and let one rip, he'd be unstoppable." He mused.

"Definitely something he'd do…" I said back, laughing some more as I pictured a mischievous Gazzy brandishing his ass and threatening a poor Seven-Eleven cashier or something. "But don't give him any ideas." I decided to add. Then again, this was Iggy I was talking to…

After a few quiet seconds, just when Iggy looked about to leave from our dying down conversation, I grabbed hold of his upper arm and looked him in the eye, even though he couldn't see me.

"And you? How are you feeling?" I asked, genuinely concerned. I mean, I honestly believed Iggy could be a tactless dipwad sometimes but he was still my brother. I still cared about him. (Cue: aww-ing mass of readers)

Knowing Iggy, he'd answer in the most humorous or sarcastic way possible, always avoiding talking about mushy-gushy feelings (one of the reasons why he probably doesn't have a girlfriend yet). We weren't generally emotional people so that was our offense. He was, after all, the wittiest among the flock.

"I'm feelin' fine…_and I'm lookin' fine_." He said 'seductively' (and you can imagine my emphasis on those quotation marks), running his hands through his disheveled hair and smiling 'seductively' at me.

"I'm being serious here, you dumbbutt." I smacked his arm, though I gotta admit, he got a grin out of me.

"Don't get your thongs in a twist!" He took a step back, holding his hands up to protect himself. "I'm fine, _mother._"

I was just about to raise my arm to whack him upside the head, but then the bright smile left his face and his whole stance suddenly filled with an air of soberness.

"But thanks for your concern. Really… 'Cause y'know, for a second I really thought I was gonna die back there." He said, his eyes looking every which way but mine despite the fact that he couldn't feel my stare anyway. Or could he?

"The pain was…" he begun, but then he caught himself, pressing his lips into a thin line when he realized he was beginning to talk about his feelings. That's not how he rolled. "Well I guess the whitecoats seem to have done something right for once."

I was tempted to point out that if it weren't for them, Gazzy wouldn't even have that ability either, but instead said, "You win some, you lose some. 'sides, flying makes up for it, don't you think?" I tried smiling back.

When stuck in that awkward moment when anyone in the flock brings up or complains about the past, you quickly divert it and bring up flying. It's saved my butt in multiple close-calls of bitter, I-need-a-tissue issues.

"_I hate what those whitecoats did! They should roast in hell!" "If they didn't do those things though, we wouldn't have wings."_

"_My wings over-stretch all my shirts. I can't wear_ anything!" _"Well at least when you apply to be a Victoria Secret Angel, you already come with the wings."_

"_Why does everyone make fun of us with that stupid R Kelly song!" "Look on the bright side: we can really touch the sky…"_

Iggy suddenly raised his head to look at me, and for a moment I thought he'd heard all the weird thoughts in my head. Damn.

"Are you okay?" he asks, his voice gentle, and I actually had to study his face for a few seconds to determine if he was for real.

"_Tyeah!_ No pain no gain, right?" I said, rolling my bad shoulder and refraining from hissing at the burst of fire. In fact, it wasn't even that painful anymore; I just jostled it a bit. I'm sure it'd be fine by the morning.

"Max…" he said, sternly, which was very unlike him. And if we weren't talking about the burns, then…

"I'm fricken' dandy. Why wouldn't I be?" I snapped, complete with disbelieving snort.

"It's pretty obvious you're not." He replied, sounding so sure of himself. He even crossed his arms over his chest to prove his point, causing my eyebrows to fly to my hairline.

"Oh, so now your enhanced hearing can magically detect someone's body temperature? Am I running a fever? _Gosh darn it!_ Those sneaky whitecoats think of everything!" I exclaimed bitterly, trying to hide whatever I was actually feeling. I wasn't even sure myself how I felt right now – if I was upset, angry, depressed or what.

"I'm not talking about your health, you idiot." Wow Igs, thanks for caring. "I don't give a flying flip if you started crapping shit the shape of dinosaurs and– "

"I get it! I get it! Yeesh… I'm _fine_, Iggy. Bruised, burnt and bloody tired, but what's new?" Ever the persistent one… Since when did he care so much? True, we have become much closer during the school year but it was almost like he _knew…_

"Max, I heard what happened back there." He blurted out, sounding sympathetic.

I had half the mind to scold him for eavesdropping but I was more mortified that he'd heard our conversation.

It dawned on me that he'd heard the I love you's, witnessed that private moment, and our feelings that came with it. Embarrassment washed over me from my head to my toes, realizing that he saw me in that lovey-dovey mushy-gushy state; I would only allow Fang to see that side of me. My face heated up and I could just imagine the blush on my cheeks.

"Oh. That." I responded lamely.

I anticipated the sarcastic comeback, the joking retort that would get to me by just a _tiny_ bit, but instead he opened his arms wide and smiled sweetly at me, the gesture quite appealing.

I'd never admit it out loud, but I absolutely love receiving hugs, especially massive bear hugs from people bigger than me (I'm freakishly tall so there are not a lot of choices). Who didn't enjoy the acceptance and comfort? Or maybe it was just because I rarely got them.

But…this was _Iggy_. Iggy, my stupid brother who used to walk around the house without a shirt just to get on my nerves. Iggy, the jerk who put all my trainer bras and panties in the freezer the time I confiscated his tool box when we were 12. He was maturing, I'll admit, but he still has the High School Musical soundtrack (_all_ three of them) on his iPod. You could never be to sure with him.

"You are high as heck right now, aren't you?" I raised an eyebrow (I seemed to be doing that a lot lately), testing the waters to see if we were clear.

And at those words, he threw his head back and laughed, ever muscle in my body resisting the urge to sock him in the eye. I knew it was too good to be true.

"Thank the Lord Almighty! For a second there, I thought I was going to have to console you or something." And his horrified facial expression made it look I'd just told him I was cooking breakfast tomorrow morning, his eyes widening with alarm. It was nice to know I had the greatest friends who were always there for me. Really.

I snorted again, probably looking _stunningly_ attractive in the process. "You keep forgetting I'm _Maximum Ride_, but thanks for your concern. Or at least trying to be," I rolled my eyes. "It was bound to happen someday."

Though when I uttered the last sentence, his smile dropped from his face, his eyebrows crinkling together as if confused.

It was creepy how hot and cold his emotions were; when one second he's fooling around like an idiot, and suddenly deadpan with an icy stare in the next. He mulled over my words for a moment before coming to respond with, "No Max, it wasn't."

And I didn't know what else to say to that.

"Yeah, well…" I shrugged, still unable to recognize what I was supposed to feel, and the next thing I knew I was trapped in an embrace with Iggy, his strong arms wrapped around my back with my head tucked underneath his chin.

I'm only saying this once, but it felt…_good_, hugging someone else. Fang's hugs were amazing, but there was something about brotherly hugs that made things better. Simple, because it didn't come with an overflow of emotions that usually came in the package of a relationship.

More so because Iggy wasn't the huggy-type of person, and assuming he initiated it (because I surely didn't), I felt a weight lift off my chest and I inhales deeply, all my emotions at ease. It was different, but a comforting type of different. It was a nice change.

"Thanks Iggy." I whispered, truly meaning it as I slowly lifted my arms to hug him back, clutching the cloth of his shirt with my hands. He was warm, and I'll deny it if any of you ever bring it up, but my body instinctively pressing closer to his, relishing its comfort. I didn't even have to worry about the aftermath because I knew he wouldn't bring this up ever, since we were both actually enjoying the hug.

We seemed to stay like that for an eternity.

Seconds past. With my whole being feeling content with just that, I was ready to step back, my impassive face in check for when we turned away to leave. I tried pulling away, but his arms were still tight around me. It was starting to get awkward.

"Umm…dude, you can let go now."

Then get this.

"Nah, I don't think I want to," He murmured, "I quite like us like this."

Good feelings over.

My eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, the peace suddenly being replaced by disbelief and discomfort.

"_Oh gods_…Iggy, _get off me!_ That practically incestual, you perv!" I exclaimed, horrified. I pushed at his shoulder but he only held me tighter, laughing into my ear. That asshole!

"So were you and Fang but you never heard me complainin'." He responded, a smile in his voice. And if that wasn't enough, he had the nerve to say, "So I guess this means you're single now…" A suggestive, sly tone in his voice. My nose scrunched up with disgust at the thought.

In fact, my whole body felt grossed out now with his flesh against mine, chest to chest, now that this embrace took on a different meaning. We weren't biological sibling but there just seemed to be something very wrong with the idea of me and Iggy. Fang was originally a brother to me, nothing more, but Iggy was just…_Iggy._

"Good Lord, don't even. Just…_no_," I was able to draw back far enough to have us face to face (technically face to neck, but I was looking up), my tone suddenly cold. This embrace was becoming extremely uncomfortable now and I wanted out. "Iggy, let go of me or I'm going to wham you in the balls hard enough to switch your gender."

Whether or not he believed my threat, his arms slid down from around my waist anyways, chuckling under his breath as he did so. Good thinking on his part too, because my knee was notorious with a mind of its own.

Sighing, he tried focusing his eyes on mine, though his gaze was more on my eyebrows. Close enough. "Are you absolutely sure you're-"

"Oh my God! _Yes!_ I've only been boyfriend-less for a few minutes and I'm already lovin' it. I'm at the prime of my life! I'm single and _so_ ready to mingle! _I'm fine!_" I exclaimed breathlessly, yanking on my hair with frustration that he wasn't believing me, but smiling at the same time.

His clouded stare was piercing, almost looking like he was seeing right through my soul. I couldn't recall when he'd gotten so…old. He was the same age as me and Fang, but we've always treated him as one of the kids. These past few days though, he's grown up some. His joking exterior was his armor against reality, but the stakes were higher now. We couldn't afford to be normal teenagers.

I knew what he meant. He was asking about everything because I had a lot on my plate. It didn't matter that I wasn't flock leader anymore – I would always stress over the flock, always worry about them before myself. I was scared _for_ myself – because of my power, scared for Gazzy. And just right now I broke up with Fang.

Usually Fang was the person who assured me these things but I felt in that moment that Iggy needed assuring too. He needed to know I was okay.

Because everything in the world felt wrong if I wasn't.

Maybe I wasn't fine. Maybe I was hurting deep down, ready to explode, but I couldn't let anyone know. They knew I was the strongest. I was always the one who held my head high, determination in my eyes, and if I lost hope then it meant we truly were screwed. And they couldn't know that.

So I smiled. It felt natural, because whenever you're with Iggy you couldn't help it, but I smiled all the time. Smiled for the flock, for my family, for my wings and for the little things. And if I could still smile after everything, then I guess there really was still hope.

I have no idea how Iggy knew, but in the next second he had raised his arm, hand outstretched, and I felt his fingers tracing the curve of my lips. He caught me off-guard that I didn't have time to step back of jerk away; his touch tingled as they grazed gently, his eyebrows cocked in confusion.

"Max, how is it that you could still smile after all this?" he asked, probably trying to understand what I was going through. He wasn't naïve; never was. And to the younger kids, I would've told them that there was always something to smile about, but to him I told him truthfully, "Well someone's got to."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

He knew in his heart that this was wrong, a bad idea, but he couldn't help it. It was like his feet were possessed or something. Every step he took, nearly inaudible against the cold marble floor, felt dangerous and heavy.

But it _just_ couldn't be helped.

Just a few hours ago, Fang had broken up with Max. It was close to impossible and felt completely wrong to his core but he had to do it. No matter how wrong it seemed, he knew it was the right thing.

He desperately wanted to believe they could still be together even as they saved the world, but Fate wouldn't have it. In fact, they were never supposed to have developed a more intimate relationship other than being siblings and best friends, but it happened anyway.

And Fang was glad he dated Max. No, glad doesn't even cover it.

He loved her, was _in_ love with her, that it was almost painful. He always wanted to be wherever she was, always wanted to look at her and talk to her and make her laugh, because just her mere existence was the air that he breathed. And if she died, he would too. He would live for her, continue to walk the earth for Max and the flock, but his soul would go wherever she went. However dramatic that sounded, it was true.

He never thought he could love someone this much.

When Fang was a little kid, he expected to live a life of torment and just die before he reached a two-digit age. That's what he saw all around him, experiment like himself screaming and crying in agony right before their lives ended. The first five years of his life were spent in a desolate room filled with corpses and rotting flesh. Then when he turned six, he was transferred to the next room, where he met Max.

And she taught him how to love, how to care for others, and he was so fascinated with her, how she could feel so strongly about other people when she's been living in that hellhole all her life. How she knew so much about love when nobody ever loved her.

So he loved her back, and they became the best of friends. They made promises and pacts, trusting the other with their whole heart. He just never thought that his love for her would grow so much – so much so that he wanted to be more than friends.

Fang loved everything about her – her character, her determination, her concern for others, her sarcasm, and even all the other flaws that make her up. To him, those flaws were what made Max the perfect Max. His Max.

One time, when he had nothing else to do but lie in bed and think, he even imagined growing old with her. Stupid thoughts, since they probably wouldn't last that long, but he thought about them anyway. Living peacefully in the suburbs of a quant town, having kids, eating together at the dinning table, and saying goodnight to her as they lied side by side on the same bed.

And he could go on about how much he cared for her but it would take pages and pages, and not even words could describe what he felt. He was much better at showing them through his actions. He would do anything for her.

Which was why he had to let her go.

They were distractions to each other. If Max had to choose between him and the world, she might choose him. And if he had to pick either her or the flock, he knew he was going to pick Max without a second's thought. It was wrong, and they both knew it, and so they had to stay away from each other for the time being, just until the world is saved.

No, he would not stop loving her, but taking this break apart would let them both concentrate more on the bigger picture. They just had to quell their own selfish feelings.

Right now, though, he had to see her, to make sure she was okay. She was a tough girl, he knew, but deep inside he was actually trying to comfort himself.

Finally, the door to her bedroom came into view and he took a deep breath, preparing himself. He didn't know what to expect – whether she'd scream, or treat him like dirt, or refuse to acknowledge his presence there at all – but he had to try. Once he was a few steps away he tensed himself, reached the door and pulled it open without hesitation, knowing that if he stopped before it, he'd lose courage and back out.

He strode inside her room casually, his eyes first noticing the pastel light blue of her room. He first took in his surroundings, bed unkempt with the TV blaring. Everything is how she usually placed them, messy in her own OC ways, that the only thing missing was person he came looking for in the first place – Max.

"_Fang!_ For Christ's sakes, would it kill you to knock?" a familiar voice exclaimed, and when he looked right towards her bathroom door – lo and behold it was Max in the flesh, an exasperated look on her face.

He discretely looked her up and down, taking in her nearly-dried tangle of dark blond hair, the worn out halter top she'd only wear to bed that revealed a strip of her abdomen, the dark grey knee-length sweats, her hands on her hips (which inadvertently emphasized her amazing figure), and that signature scowl on her face that should've made him flinch. But he wasn't focusing on that, because all he seeing was her in inappropriate pajamas and the fact that she looked amazing in anything, and her beautiful face no matter what the expression, and all he wanted to do was back her against the bathroom door, holding onto her hips and kiss her with everything he had. And yet he couldn't.

Instead, he smirked that special smirk he reserved for irritating Max and took two steps back, tapping his two knuckles loudly against her wooden door.

"Happy?" he asked her sarcastically. She only rolled her eyes at him and walked across her room to her bed.

"What are you even doing here anyway?" She asked, mildly defensive, as she stopped on front of the mini fridge beside her bed and bent over to reach in. Fang didn't know if she knew he was giving him access to ogle her ass, but he didn't say anything. After all, he was a guy.

"I just wanted to talk, Max." he said, walking forward slowly until he was able to sit on the side of her bed. It wasn't necessary to add her name at the end of his sentence, making him sound like an ass, but he was Fang and he normally spoke like this to her. It came naturally.

"Talk about what?" She asked, still rummaging in the fridge. He never took his eyes off her figure but he raised an eyebrow to himself in question. He was utterly confused and quite honestly afraid.

Max was being so…_normal_. Like the eerie calm before the storm. She was a little defensive earlier, but she's always like that. Fang expected her to be more…cold, or bitchier. Not that he wanted her to be, but was she that unaffected by all this? How was she not suffering what he was going through?

He watched her silently as she deftly kicked the fridge door shut and hopped into bed, tearing the wrapper off of one of the five chocolate bars she tossed on the covers with her. At first she acted like she didn't see him beside her, her brown eyes intent on the TV across the room, but then after a few seconds her gaze slid right, just as she was about to take another bite of her Snicker bar.

"_What?_" she snapped over a mouthful, raising an eyebrow.

"Y'know, all that junk is going to go straight to your trunk." Oh crap. He was toast now.

He honestly, _honestly _didn't mean that. Max had a great figure, with just the right amount of curves in all the right places.

Okay, he was just being polite. She was a fricken' _goddess_ in his eyes, unable to understand how she could look so beautiful, or badass, or so damn _sexy_ with whatever she did.

And even if she was a little bigger, or a little flatter, skinnier, darker, paler, shorter, taller, or anything other than how she looked now, he knew he still would've fallen this hard for her. He loved her in any shape; he just accidentally blurted that out, the first thing that came to his mind. He's been hanging out with Iggy too much for his own good…

"_You asshole!_" she shrieked, her eyes wide with incredulity at his statement. Neither of them expected him to say that. Max then proceeded to punch him in the arm hard enough to get a reaction out of him (an imperceptible wince, but a wince all the same), but he quickly recovered and did the first thing on his mind.

Grabbing her shoulders, he effectively pulled her closer to him, and without stopping to think, he pressed his lips against hers. He faintly noted that she tasted like sweet chocolate, it was addictive, but his thoughts were more centered around the feel of her lips on his.

Somehow, one of his hands ended up at the back of her head, fingers tangling in her streaked hair, while the other was placed lightly on her hips, holding on. She was kissing him back, moving closer, but just when he was about to angle his head to kiss her better, she pushed him away harshly, breathing raggedly from the lack of air.

"_What the hell?_" she exclaimed, running a hand through her hair and trying to move away from Fang with the palm of her other hand.

Fang knew he kissed her to shut her up, preventing her from going all ape-shit on him with a string of colorful words he knew she would've called him, but he knew better that he wanted to kiss her because he just did. Max looked cute sometimes (she'd have his ass if Fang ever told her), and this was one of those moment.

"Fang, you should've done that. We broke up." She continued on so bluntly, like he didn't already know they fricken' split up just hours ago. And he did know they shouldn't have kissed, but it doesn't mean he'll always do the right thing. Tch.

He disregarded her serious expression and the rigidness of her posture, and instead, skillfully wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She was disoriented by the swiftness of his movement that she went along with it as he leaned them back against her pillows, both their bodies parallel on the bed with Max's head resting against his shoulder. He could just imagine Max's dazed expression, blinking to comprehend what just happened.

"Stop it, Fang!" She tried pushing him away when she came to her senses. "What the _hell_ are you doing? You're just making this harder for the both of us! Let go of-"

He held on tight, laughing internally as she squirmed. Initially, he planned letting her go crazy until she grew tired, but knowing Max, it'd probably take a long while. He opted to calm her down.

"Shh… Max, calm down. Listen to me. _Agh!_ Stop kicking, love!"

"And you can't call me that either!" She pointed out, glaring daggers at him. He roll his eyes at her, but deep inside he really wanted to laugh.

A few months ago, Fang jokingly called her 'darling' during a date, to which she retorted back 'sweetheart'. He called her 'baby'; she called him 'honey'. He got back at her with the nickname 'love', but the game quickly ended when she threatened to call him 'Bugaboo Schnookums'. He quickly shut up after that.

"Fine. I'll stop calling you that if you'll stop acting like a maniac." He retorted back, raising an eyebrow. She looked like she wanted to snap something back but she settled for rolling her eyes likewise, complying anyways.

"Fine. I'm listening."

"Look, I remember what happened just a few hours ago. I'm not an idiot. But let's just…let's just enjoy each other's company, okay? I'll go in the morning, and we can be friends from then on, but let's just pretend everything's fine now." Fang's eyes held Max's as he gazed down on her, her head tilted slightly upwards to look back at him. "Max, can we please be in love for one last time?"

Fang felt like he needed to say more to try and convince her but his throat was closing up, hating that she could make him like…_this,_ all sensitive, and emotional and talkative. _It was crazy._

They made the right decision to split up, they both knew that, but even though they ended on good terms, promising to be together once everything was fine, a throbbing ache in his chest just wouldn't go away. This minor setback wasn't permanent, but it almost hurt just as much as getting a beating from Erasers. He felt like the two years he spent with Max was not enough, and he just needed more time before saying goodbye.

He continued to look at her, exteriorly impassive but freaking out like heck on the inside, waiting for her to answer. She would either push him away and tell him to go to bed, or allow him to stay and spend the night with her; he was hoping beyond hope she would choose the latter.

For a while, she just stared back with a blank stare, and his heart sunk assuming she'd chosen rejection, but after blinking twice and noticing the faint twitch on the corner of her lip, he knew he had her.

Without words, Max stretched her arm somewhere near her thighs, grasped the half-eaten chocolate bar she'd dropped when Fang grabbed her, and pressed herself closer to Fang, continuing to eat her candy.

Fang held onto her shoulders with one arm, the other tracing gentle circles on her exposed flat abdomen lazily. He pulled her closer and kissed the side of her head near her fringe, inhaling her fruity shampoo and feeling completely content with just this.

And they watched old cartoons that they've never seen in their childhood*, shared the chocolate bars as they bit into it back and forth, laughed and talked and kissed a few times and eventually fell asleep in each others arms like couples do.

Because all they had left was tonight.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**Aren't you guys proud of me that I was able to type this up on schedule? :)**

Anyways, I hope none of you hate my guts because I left you with a pretty good (bittersweet) ending. And there are no cliffhangers so none of you have to sit at the edge of your seats until like, the end of the month.

**Was that subconscious Miggy I just wrote? :\ **Well, you guys could decide. I really like their whole sister-brother, joking-around relationship thing going on. I think it's sweet.

**How was my Fang 3****rd**** Person POV limited writing? **Please tell me if I can improve on it in any way. I felt I needed to write this because people keep thinking he's an uncaring douche bag when in fact sometimes he seems to care too much. I think I'm going to try my hand at Angel's POV in future chapters, just so you guys know what's going on in her head. :)

*Do you guys remember Hey Arnold? Rugrats? As Told by Ginger and Angry Beavers? Since we're all 90's kids I'm sure you do. :P Back here, they show them in the wee hours. I used to watch them all the time. :))

**Also, feel free to ask me any questions** because sometimes I find it difficult to put the answers and explanations into my writing. I try to make it obvious but sometimes it just isn't. :\

**OH! I found out that** the last Maximum Ride book's title is '_Nevermore_', but I guess it's still bound to change just like '_Water Wings_' and '_The Sky Is Falling_'. This better be a fucking-awesome book. -_-

**I also realized** that the last Harry Potter movie is coming out here on July 14. And technically, since we're a day earlier that the States, we're watching it 2 days earlier than you guys. Fyeah… (Unless you're British, then you obviously win. Haha!)

**Updates will obviously be slower** since I'm starting school, and since 'everyone' keeps saying this is the hardest year that I'll ever experience _ever_, I'll be doubly busy. I'll try typing out the next 5 chapters so that updates will be regular, but that's about 60 pages on my doc file. **Please be patient and don't abandon me. :)**

**Sigh.** My school uniform and backpack are mocking me across the room… Speaking of which, **who here has a school uniform? **(That's the question of the chapter guys.)

Anyways, till next time!

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	40. Bruisers and Bruises

July 13, 2011. Wednesday. (11:54pm)

**Hi everyone! :)**

Mucho appreciation to everyone who reviewed, and even to the people who just read my story! You guess are the best ever and I can't thank you guys enough. You brighten my day. :)

I decided to dedicate this chapter to **JealousMindsThinkAlike** and **AnikaandAj**, since they've got uniforms like me, lol. We gotta stick together! Heh heh… ;)

**I'm really sorry** about how late this is. Truly I am. It's just, I'm so busy all the time and I can't control my schedule. In fact, I've no time to read anymore (end of the world, no?) and even when I've got the biggest urge to write for you guys my homework's my first priority. Sorry!

This is kind of a short one. I still hope you enjoy it though!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Shrugging on a stripped sweatshirt over my baggy sweat pants the next day, I tried to recall if what went down this morning really happened. If Fang really got up at 4am and slipped out from under the covers to leave. If I had really reached out and mumbled for him to stay. If I just imagined that last kiss with my eyes half shut, the door quietly clicking shut, and the sadness I felt for a moment before I was lulled back into unconsciousness again.

Did he really barge into my bedroom in the middle of the night and ask me if he could stay? Did we really watch television and eat without a care in the world last night? And more importantly, _did we really break up yesterday?_

Swiping the comb off my dresser, eyeing my dull figure in the mirror, I raked through the tangles, pondering my chances of losing all my hair and sporting a shiny bald head at the ripe age of 20. As I continued struggling with the dark blond mess, pulling out a bunch of strands in the process, a flash of black at the back of my neck reflected on the mirror and it hit me again why I haven't put my hair into a ponytail or a braid in weeks.

I wasn't going to reach my 20th birthday. Or even the next one for that matter.

Sighing, I cast my eyes downwards and spotted the candy wrappers from last night strewn across the floor, reminding me of everything that happened and that I _did_ in fact break up with Fang last night.

Two downers in the span of five seconds. A personal new record.

God, wasn't I ever the emo one. I thought I was over this.

Shaking my head to clear all my depressing thoughts, I left the room and made my way towards the kitchen, predicting that the whole flock plus my mom and Ella were already halfway through breakfast.

Skipping down the steps two at a time, my mind was still lingering on how things ended with Fang. My brain felt fuzzy, trying to remember all the exchange of words, but there wasn't much to think about. I broke up with him (rather _he_ broke up with _me_, but those details weren't important…) so we could concentrate on the flock. This was all for them.

I _had_ to do this for the flock, and now that that predicament was settled, I hoped everything else would fall into place somehow. That I could solve everything, save the world, apologize to Fang and…and everything would be over with.

With my thoughts still on my family as I strode down the hallway, I suddenly remembered promising Gazzy I would help him control his ability, and as I entered the kitchen I didn't have to fake the smile on my face. Doubtless, this afternoon was guaranteed to be chaotic.

"Good morning." I greeted everyone, sounding un-characteristically Max as I turned right to enter the kitchen. Grabbing a paper plate from the kitchen island, I forked my first serving of four pancakes, two eggs and a truckload amount of bacon that were obviously store-bought.

Since mom was at the head of the table, I figured she already saw the misshapen heap that was our old stove (I mean, it was just right _there_). I wondered what her face must've looked like when she found out, and more importantly how the flock explained to her what happened. I'm surprised she hasn't popped an artery yet.

I observed how normal this all seemed, with Ella, Nudge and Gazzy engaged in conversation, my mom reading the newspaper as if she wasn't mentally shooting us in her mind for what happened with the stove, Iggy slouched and stuffing his face with sausages, and Angel sipping daintily at her coffee, just listening in on the others' conversation; Fang hasn't come down yet, though I knew he'd be making an appearance soon.

They all greeted me back with varying levels of enthusiasm, and I was happy to note that none of them flinched or avoided my gaze today. Bonus.

"What so good about it?" Iggy was the only one who grumbled in response from beside me just as I reached the table. Before I took my seat across him, I whacked him at the back of his head with force. Who shoved a branch up his ass this morning?

"_What about the 'BadBoys!'_" Nudge suddenly exclaimed two seats to my right, eyes sparkling as if she'd just met the Johan Brothers or something. I raised an eyebrow at her curiously but decided to ask about it later.

Just as my mom stood up to brew her coffee, a regular routine wherein she stood beside the machine and waited to fill her office tumbler and mug, I turned my attention to Gazzy, smiling as reassuringly as I could.

"So are you ready to practice that ability of yours, Gaz?" I asked, trying not to make my voice too loud.

At my statement, everyone seemed to stop whatever they were doing and diverted their attention to us now, waiting for his answer.

The fork Gazzy was clutching clattered against his plate and he widened his eyes, suddenly remembering the events of yesterday.

For a moment, I expected he still wasn't ready for this, especially because of the onslaught of trauma he dealt with the day before. But just as I was about to cancel our plans this afternoon, I felt a swell of pride in me as I noticed the sudden change in his stance, determined to be strong about this. He didn't freak out or get all dark and brooding on me; he took a deep breath and picked his fork back up, looking me straight in the eyes as he said, "What should I wear? Is there any specific gear that I'll-"

Okay, _hold up._

We were about to train a trigger-happy 9-year old bird kid with digestive problems how to control his ability to shoot flames of fury from his hands, and the first thing he asks me was _what he should wear?_

Sweet Jesus, please don't tell me he's been hanging out with Nudge…

I drew back a little, giving him the universal 'WTF face'.

"Whoa there, Nelly! Where do you think we're going? Twenty thousand leagues under the sea? We're using the backyard! Wear your normal clothes!" I exclaimed, chuckling lightheartedly which brought a blossom of scarlet to his cheeks.

"And by normal clothes, she means jeans and a t-shirt. Not your birthday suit, Gaz." Ella added with a straight face without looking up from her plate of waffles. Golly, she knew us too well.

"Okay, _okay!_ Now that we've got Gazzy's fashion dilemma solved, we should get down to the real issue at hand." Nudge said, leaning forward on the breakfast table with excitement leaking out of her whole demeanor. I was well rested from last night but Nudge's peppiness was a whole other level I couldn't handle at this time in the morning.

Trying to go along with the flow of things, I raised an eyebrow to the rest of them.

"What're you guys talking about anyway?" I asked, looking from face to face for an answer.

"_Ninjenchmen!_" Gazzy shouted, the volume of his voice too loud for my still-slightly-groggy state. I winced then turned my attention to Ella instead, hoping she could fill me in on all the hoopla.

"They're trying to think of a name for the people who attacked you guys at school and in California. I don't get why they're so into it though – that's a pretty morbid hobby if you ask me." Ella said with a look that clearly told me she was weirded out by this. I mean, it's not everyday you eat breakfast with a bunch of mutants who happily nickname the people who constantly try to kill them. Woohoo.

I laughed aloud to myself, both at her expression and their enthusiasm at this. Tossing a speared piece of pancake down my throat, I talked so very graciously with my mouth full.

"Well what can you do about it? We can't keep calling them 'the wannabe ninjas' or 'the guys who tried kidnapping Max' all the time. And it gets fun eventually." I tried reassuring her, though she didn't look anywhere near convinced.

We all went back to listening in on Gazzy and Nudge's back and forth banter, voicing our opinions at times and laughing at the ridiculous ideas of: MeanMen, DreadfulDudes and MaddeningMales. Three guesses to who suggested those.

"_Where?_" Iggy cried as he stood behind Nudge and pretended to prod her upper arms and frizzy hair with splayed fingers, his voice sounding utterly desperate with exaggeration. "_Where is the goddamn off button on this thing?_"

I reprimanded him on his language, but Nudge's voice overlapped mine.

"_Hey!_" she whirled around in her seat and smacked him on the stomach, an offended look on her face. "Well who's the blind dimwit who named the Flyboys? I mean _Flyboys?_ _Really?_ At least _my_ suggestions are a bajillion times more creative than that!"

"Well it's much better than the M-geeks. Who named _that_ trash anyway?" Iggy quickly shot back, thinking it was Nudge's doing when it was actually _my_ creation. And I was proud of that nickname, thank you very much.

Suddenly, I found myself thrown into the verbal brawl as well, leaning forward myself and growing very defensive.

"_Oi!_ _I_ happened to name those fricken' vending machines, and you're just jealous you could never come up with something as epic as M-geek!"

"Who named the Erasers?" Ella asked innocently to no on in particular as Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy and I butted heads and spat spit all over the place. We get very competitive when it comes to name-calling, you see.

"I did," Angel chimed from around the rim of her coffee mug, her eyes smiling and the tone of her voice sounding so cheery, it was heart-breaking and annoying as heck at the same time. "I once heard it from a whitecoat's head when we were still at the School, so we called them Erasers. I never knew why though."

"Maybe it's because they destroy everything in their path, ruin families and memories, and erase you from the face of the earth just because they can." I voiced my idea, after our verbal brawl came to a temporary stalemate and I re-took my seat. Everyone's faces turned to look at me.

"Or maybe they merely got the name from the rubber thingy on the end of their number two pencils. For all we know, our codenames at the School are the Staplers, or the Desk Lamps." Iggy decided to point out, and as stupid as that sounded, he had a point.

Imagine that: _John, I was able to narrow down their specific locations. The Desk Lamps are currently heading west of Minnesota. I repeat, the Desk Lamps are currently heading west of Minnesota._

"I'm telling you, we should go with Ninjenchmen." Gazzy said, snapping me out of my weird daydream, his face purely serious at his proposal.

"Gazzy, the guys who attacked me and Iggy weren't even the same guys from the California mission. They're not all ninjas." I told him, staring with amusement as his face fell.

"WHAT ABOUT LOSERLADS!" Nudge screamed, 'causing all of us to glare at her from around the table. Goodness gracious, it's was too early for that.

"For a second there, I almost forgot why we _didn't_ let you name the bad guys." Iggy retorted sarcastically and Nudge twisted around in her seat again to scowl at him (which was wasted, of course).

"Okay, scratch Ninjenchmen. Ninja_guys_ is _way_ better." Gazzy cut in again after a moment's thought. I tried resisting the urge to sigh, I really did, but it couldn't be helped.

"Gazzy, I hate to tell you buddy, but both those ideas suck." I said to him as nicely as I could; in response he stuck his tongue out at me childishly. Tch.

Nudge smacked her hands together loud enough to draw all our attention to her, and I imagined the proverbial light bulb over her head shorting out at the rate her thoughts were going. How could she think of so many lame ideas all at once?

"_GoodatfightingGuys!_" She practically screamed with giddiness, absolutely loving her idea. The rest of our faces told her otherwise.

"Nudge, that's the worst suggestion you've given us." Angel said, trying not to sound too harsh. We didn't usually see eye to eye nowadays but this was a definite exception.

"Yeah! And if you keep on going, soon enough your nickname will be 'NettlingNudge'." Iggy added, swallowing down the snicker that I'm sure was threatening to explode from his mouth. I myself held back my grin too, so as to not encourage him.

Nudge began to take a deep breath, ready to start cursing Iggy's name, when suddenly Gazzy piped up again, an unholy grin on his face. _Oh no…_

"Hey, don't knock it till you've tried it!" he exclaim, and in Fang's deep voice he continued, "'sides, you'd probably agreed to it if Fang suggested it."

And even if I was seeing Gazzy's face in front of me, saw his lips shape the words and the mischievous look in his eyes as he uttered them, I couldn't stop the heat that rushed onto my cheeks and neck. His mimicking abilities were so uncanny that I even felt embarrassed (moi, _embarrassed_) despite knowing it was him. And he knew that.

Smirking some more, he feigned shock and continued in Fang's signature raspy voice, "Are you _blushing_, Maxie poo? I didn't know his voice had this kind of effect on you," And putting everything Iggy's taught him to good use, he went on saying, "Oh my God, Max. You're blushing even more! Does this make you feel…_uncomfortable?_"

Dear God, the laughter coming from the whole flock was enough to make me imagine them all developing six-pack abs right about now. Tears were streaming down faces, stomachs were being clutched, hands were being clapped like retarded seals and even Iggy was literally 'lmfao-ing' at my obvious unease. It wasn't _that_ funny, really guys.

I could do nothing but threaten him in return (my mom was still in the kitchen; she had a strict policy about blood stains anywhere in the house), though I knew it was pointless; once Gazzy was on a roll, there was no stopping him.

"Are you weak in the knees from Fang's _sultry_ voice? Do you go gaga when he sexily whispers in the – _OW!_" Gazzy was cut of from his tirade when we noticed then that Fang was in the room, still sporting his pajamas and his 'I-just-got-out-of-bed-but-I-look-fabulous' disheveled hair. He'd whacked Gazzy is the back of his head hard, and unperturbed he headed for the kitchen island to get his breakfast.

From my peripheral vision, I noticed Angel inconspicuously eyeing the both of us back and forth, and without a doubt I knew she knew we were through. Most likely she'd picked up those thoughts from Iggy and was now wondering how we were going to react this morning. I was wondering the same thing.

As the rest of the flock laughed at Gazzy and went back to their previous conversation, I kept my eyes on the back of Fang's figure.

'_We broke up. Things were not the same anymore. They couldn't be. I had to concentrate on my mission, and so did he. I don't love him. Well, I do, but I can't love him the way I wanted to. I had to focus.' _I told myself over and over.

The likely chance of chanting this in my head and these thoughts actually coming true was small, but I had to _try_. Anyways, I'd be the same Max I was when I was 14, except a tiny bit more grown-up now. Surely it wasn't that hard. We broke up on good terms anyway, and parted ways in a civil manner; there was no need for dramatics or any awkward vibes to put us all in eggshells.

I contemplated this while my eyes continued to stay on the back of his head, and the moment Fang spun around to get to the table, our eyes met. And we just stared at the other.

Trapped.

It lasted for three seconds, I knew, but to me it felt like eternity.

The darkness of his eyes, orbs of etched charcoal, were filled with questions, thoughts that relieved me knowing he wasn't going to shut me out. He was asking in the silence how things were going to be – whether I was going to make this easy or not.

And I didn't have to stop and think for a moment because I already knew my answer. Leader or not, I needed Fang by my side and I didn't have the time or will to argue with him.

We both agreed that it was better to break up for the sake of our family, but it didn't immediately mean I would go easy on him. It was my choice if I was going to go back to ignoring him, or take him back as my best friend and save the world together.

I think my choice was pretty obvious.

"Fang, please tell Nudge she's being ridiculous." I said in an exasperated voice, clearing the area beside me for him and breaking the intense eye contact that seemed to affect me more than it should.

Pleased with my decision, Fang half-smiled in the way only he could and quickly sat down next to me, angling his body to the rest of us.

"What're they on about?" he asked, his voice casual, and I internally breathed a sigh of relief that it could be as simple as this. No drama.

"They're thinking of names for the bad guys who've been after us – or as Nudge liked to call them, the _MeanMen_." I explained to him. At the mention of the nickname, I noticed the slight crinkle between his eyebrows that told me he thought it was horrible. He and I both…

"What was Gazzy's suggestion?" he asked.

"It's _Ninjaguys_ against _GoodatfightingGuys_. Pick a side." I said dryly, then proceeded to attempted and fit a whole piece of bacon into my mouth.

And people wonder why I'm so gosh darn appealing.

"How about neither." He stated quietly (though with humor in his eyes) and he went back to his food, all the while ignoring Gazzy and Nudge's protests.

"Well my idea is more plausible than yours since they're all _good at fighting_ anyway! They're not all ninjas, Gaz!"

"_GoodatfightingGuys_ is a mouthful! Not to mention stupid!"

"Are you calling me stupid?"

"No, but your ideas are!"

"They are _so_ not. You take that back!"

"_Make me!_"

I tried concentration on my eggs but their gradually rising tones made it hard for me. I thought of maybe finishing my food elsewhere, but suddenly alarm bells started off in my head when it dawned on me that we were dealing with a kid who shoots friggin' _fire balls of doom,_ and a chick who can manipulate knives and forks.

And we were in a kitchen.

Well, _crap_.

Thinking on my feet, I stuck my thumb and index finger into my mouth and whistled loudly, effectively calling the attention of the whole flock. All of their heads whipped around to face me and I made a poor excuse to avoid any further damage to the furniture. Mom would be livid (she was already ticked off from the knife marks cut into the overhead cabinets).

"_Guys! _It doesn't matter what we call them so quit arguing about it. Don't make it such a big deal."

"Yeah," Fang decided to add, "we can call them the…I dunno, the Bruisers or something. Maybe even the Mechanical Pencils." He said, despite not knowing our earlier exchange.

"That's it!" Angel exclaimed, hearing her speak in her cutesy voice for the second time this morning.

"You mean the Mechanical Pencils? 'Cause I was joking about that." Fang said.

"No, not the pencils. _The Bruisers!_" she said, smiling.

"Y'know, I think I remember that name from a cartoon. I think it was a gang name…" Iggy voiced but no one was really paying attention to him.*

Ella even decided to give her input too, playing around with the syrup on her plate. "Angel's got a point there though. I mean, they all do give pretty nasty bruises to you guys. And it doesn't sound as silly as _GoodatfightingGuys_. No offense, Nudge."

"_Not fair!_ Why is everything so darn _brilliant_ if it comes out of Fang's mouth!" Gazzy whined. We all laughed at that, and at least Fang had the modesty to blush.

"Bruisers it is guys!" I stated, and was about to throw my plate in the trash bin and change into more layers for Gazzy's training outside when Ella spoke over me, a sly tone to her voice much like Gazzy's a while ago.

Dear Lord, please don't let Ella regret whatever's about to come out of her mouth.

"Speaking of bruises…" she said in a song-song voice, "Me wonders what is upon thy neck, oh elder sister of mine." Her smile was overly smug and insinuating that it made me think she knew something I didn't.

I faintly wondered what's with all the medieval lingo but I was more concerned about what she was referring to. My hand flew up to my neck, fingers searching for anything that might be stuck or embedded on it – likely sticky syrup or a piece of pancake – but then I made the connection to Ella's words and instantly I could've been blushing bright red from my head to my toes. I really could've.

Memories from yesterday swirled in my mind. They were various short snippets, but it wasn't so far past yet for me to forget the details – forget the feel of Fang's lips trailing hot kisses down the side of my face and neck, the desperate need to hold him closer to me, the way his teeth grazed the flesh of my collarbone as I tangled my fingers though his messy dark hair…

And the more the memories rushed back to me, the more embarrassed I felt to my core. Luckily Angel isn't able to read my mind anymore of she would've been scarred as hell for life; it was a wonder how Fang kept all these thoughts from her.

Oh God… I couldn't believe Fang gave me a _hickey._ I mean, a hickey? _Really?_ He should've known better than to do that, and I should've seen this in the mirror this morning!

Not to mention I felt _disgusted_, not just because I'd done something the kids should never have to know about until they were 40, but also because it made me feel like…like a _ho_ or something. I wasn't that kind of person, just allowing a guy to leave a friggin' purpling mark on me. All the more because I'd broken up with him just moments after (despite the circumstances). Like the act of kissing didn't seem important to me.

Worst of all – get this, guys – I wasn't able to cover it fast enough. When I'd realized what she was talking about, I hurriedly brushed some of my long hair forward to conceal the offending mark. But from the looks of it, Fang and Nudge saw it. Iggy, the ever perverted one, figured it out from just Ella's words. And I could tell Angel knew – whether she got it from Iggy, or Fang, or Ella's mind, she knew (for a seven year old she seemed to know much more than even me sometimes). The only one who was left in the dark was Gazzy, and even then I figured Iggy would tell him later on.

Clearing my throat, I tried my best to ignore Angel look of disgust, Nudge's expression of shock, and Iggy's pathetic attempts at covering his chuckles. "Well I'm going to take a shower. Gazzy, be ready in ten." I said as professionally as I could before I stood up and headed for the exit.

Just when I was three steps away to freedom from the awkward atmosphere, no one other than _the best blind brother I've ever had_ decided to pipe up obnoxiously loud. Please note the sarcasm.

"Wanna know what I'll be doing, Fang? I plan on working on my stash of bombs! Y'know, constructing the internal mechanisms, combining some chemicals, lighting some _bruises_ – I mean, _fuses,_ and whatnot." He said, exaggeratedly perky and pronouncing ever single syllable clearly as if he was Dora the goddamn Explorer or something.

Iggy, you better know when to shut it.

I clenched my fist from where I stood, back ramrod straight. Pushing down the urge to strangle him, I spun on my heel and faced him, faux apathy plastered on my face.

"Actually, all of you guys will be helping me, so I suggest you all get dressed too." I said, slightly smiling.

"Helping Max with what?"

I hadn't realized my mom walked up behind me, looking expectantly at all our faces to know our agenda today. She was usually very lenient, letting us do whatever we wanted since we grew up so liberal, but there was a line she drew and I think we crossed that with what happened with the stove. She just wouldn't let it go, would she?

"Oh Dr. M! You see, the flock has to help me with my new pow-" Gazzy started, rambling to help my mom understand what went down yesterday, but he couldn't tell her about it. I wanted to keep their new powers just between us kids.

Putting my _bestest_ cover up plan in motion, I took a step back and pretended to cough, sneakily stepping onto Gazzy's toes harshly to get him to shut up. He yelped, but my coughs were louder, and by my hard sideways glance I knew he knew he had to zip his mouth.

Thankfully, my mom was looking at her watch at the exact moment, bending in the process to pick up her work bag off the floor.

"New _punch_. Gazzy's yet to perfect this new technique I was teaching them, and he asked us if we could help him with it." I continued for him, going into innocent daughter mode. Well, not so innocent since we were taking about fighting techniques so…

Mom raised an eyebrow. "You've been sparring lately?"

"Yeah, I mean, you always gotta stay on your toes, right?" I replied nonchalantly with a shrug.

Of course, Nudge then had to whisper my name, a perplexed expression on her face. I swiftly glanced at everyone and noticed that they too were all confused but were wise enough to stay silent.

When mom distractedly grabbed her car keys from the hook on the counter, I gave Ella a stern look and whispered almost inaudibly to the flock, "_Tuma oyamkee agnak_," using the old language we made up which roughly translates to, "Shut up and don't argue."

"Well please practice outside if you're going to train, or use the gym, alright?" Mom's voice was kind but we could all deduce that her usage of _please_ really meant _you better_.

"Gasman," Iggy suddenly piped up, on the verge of hysterics that I braced myself. "Why the _hickey_ – I mean, _sickly_ pallor, man? Is something wrong?" he asked, fighting down the urge to grin.

Taking a threatening step towards him, Iggy darted around back to where Fang sat, snickering all the while. _That little…_

To Gazzy, I took my heel away from his poor toes, smiling apologetically. Whoops. Didn't mean to crush his piggies too hard.

"Wait. What was that you said?" my mom turned around again after Ella kissed her goodbye, looking at Iggy.

"Gazzy's just nervous, mom. Don't listen to Iggy's stupid drivel; it's contagious." I decided to answer for him.

"Which is why we're practically related, sister dear." He drawled, coming to stand next to me all of a sudden and slinging and arm around my shoulders. We were both pretending to smile, the fake display of sibling rivalry a little too much, and in return I punched him in the stomach 'jokingly' for his earlier comment. He winced but continued on smiling, albeit tightly.

The whole flock watched our display, holding back giggles and chuckles. My mom looked confused for a second, before she shook her head and made her way to the back door.

"You know what? I don't even wanna know. See you later; bye kids!" she said, her voice fading from the distance as she entered the garage and out of sight.

"Wait!" Iggy started forward to call after her. "Do I start dinner early or are we gonna order _make-out_, I mean _take-out_?"

_He was a dead. Man. Walking. _

So I took that as my cue to tackle him to the ground and proceeded to pin him down with my weight.

"_Iggy, you asshole!"_ I screeched, punching and slapping him repeatedly with zeal.

"Ma-Max! Language!" He choked out in between chuckles, dodging my fists as best as he could.

I didn't really know what was going on with the rest of the flock – I think I heard Gazzy ask Fang what exactly a hickey was – since I was so hell-bent on murdering Iggy, this guy who I'd poured half of my heart and soul out to yesterday. I couldn't believe I forgot how infuriating he was. That _douche…_

"Wait, Max," Ella yelled over the ruckus, and I don't know what made me do so but I halted mid-slap, both our heads whipping around to face her. Using this distraction as an opening, Iggy wriggled out of my grasp and stood up, going round the table again as if Fang would protect him from me. Tch.

"What?" I said, dusting my sweatpants and getting up as well.

"Why didn't you just tell mom we were helping Gazzy with his powers? Does mom even know the boys developed new ones?" she asked.

Looking up from my lap, I glanced at everyone and noticed they were all staring back at me, waiting for an explanation. Right.

Inside my head, the gears were turning, and I knew the answer was simply because I didn't want Jeb to know. I trusted my mom – I've mentioned this time and time again – but my mom trusts Jeb and she tells him everything that concerns us. My biological father has yet to betray us _again_ otherwise, but even now I didn't want him to figure this out, knowing I could somehow be putting them all in danger. I don't know what made me say so, but I felt like I only wanted us kids to know. I felt it in my bones that the seven of us should be the only ones to know about everyone's new powers.

"She doesn't. She can't. I don't want any of you guys telling my mom about any of this, okay? The stove was a freak accident. In fact, you can pin the blame on me since I can practically set the kitchen sink on fire," a few chuckled quietly at that, "Just please keep this between us seven, okay?" I said, looking at each and everyone one of them to get the message clear. And by the tone of my voice, I guess they could tell I was serious about this.

"Did the Voice tell you this?" Fang asked, a blank look on his face but voice tinged with discernable concern.

"No, I just had this gut feeling." I told them honestly but not really in the mood to expound on it. I could've easily told them why, but Ella was in the room and I didn't want to discus flock matters with her.

Gazzy was the first to nod, I noticed, and I could see it in his eyes that he believed in me. I guess that was enough for him, especially since I saved him from his school's principal when I'd went with my gut feeling then.

Shortly after, he announced that he was going to take a shower and I followed suit, everyone resuming their meals and earlier conversations. At the doorframe however, Ella called out to me again, a weak undertone to her voice that made me spin around and face her.

She was leaning against the counter, poised in a sag-like manner with her eyebrows scrunched together on her face. Her next words were quiet, almost as if she was asking this to herself, but I knew everyone heard it.

"_Don't you trust mom?_" she murmured, head bent low with her brown eyes piercing mine.

Somehow, I knew she didn't just mean our mom. In a way, both Ella and my mom were a package deal. When I was clipped in the wing that time I saved Ella, they both nursed me back to health. When I came back, she stayed and skipped her soccer practice to catch up with me. And when I was shot in my wing _again_, the three of us cooked all together, mother-daughter bonding as good as it could get.

It's upsetting that I couldn't completely confide in them like I wanted to, no matter how close I've grown to them. But it wasn't their fault; it was just a matter of keeping them in the dark, only letting them in on a few things to protect them. That's all I could do for them when they've done so much in return.

I would break her heart if I told her flat out no, clearly translating without a need to explain that I didn't trust either of them, so instead I kept my answers vague and made sure I had a clean getaway to avoid further questioning.

With my voice leveled, I made sure that everyone in the flock heard me when I said, "To be perfectly honest with you, I don't really trust anyone."

And even then, I wasn't lying.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

They were all ready when Fang and I had slid the glass door to the garden shut, meeting them where they were all just talking together. Even Ella was there, dispersing from the group once we had arrived and coming to watch from the shaded porch, plopping herself down on the outdoor couch and giving me a thumbs up. I wasn't sure if she held what I'd said earlier against me, but I was glad she was taking it fairly well.

Just moments ago, Fang and I briefly discussed how we were going to train Gazzy. From the corner of my eye I could see him staring off into the vast clearing of our backyard, looking as if he was either contemplating or just spacing out. Most likely spacing out though.

It felt good to put my leadership skills into some form of use again, no matter how tiny this project was. Transcendental as I sound, I reveled in the feeling of being in control, making the decisions and barking out orders. That's what I was good at.

Without any need for words, I knew Angel would let me be since this was my idea. I quickly smiled at her when we made eye contact and I was glad she was on my side for once, following my directions like she used to. Everyone knew that I was the best at teaching and handling situations such as this, and it was all the more relevant because I was going through the same process as the boys, still trying to figure out my force field ability as well.

The whole flock sans Gazzy discussed how we were going to do this first, bunching up into a group huddle and all and taking into consideration the hazards and safety precautions. In the pit of my stomach, I knew it wasn't going to go as smoothly as I'd imagined it would be since our ideas never go as planned. We then got the equipment and all that jazz and finally turned to face Gazzy, probably looking like some legit A team heading into a battle field. Well…okay, that was so far-fetched.

"'Kay, so we all talked about it, and before anything else we're going to have to figure out how your body triggers the ability in the first place." I said, and since no one was piping up afterwards I took the liberty of explaining to a confused-looking Gazzy.

"What we mean is, sometimes it depends on how they programmed the power in you. First, there's the kind that's always turned on so to say. We decided to name it an instinctual trigger. Kinda like how Angel can read minds all the time; she can't turn it off, she just reads people's minds because she can hear others' thoughts. Or like Iggy's new power, where his body will instinctively heal itself if he gets hurt. He doesn't have to switch it on in any way.

"Clearly, since you're not pelting us with deathly fireballs of doom from your hands at this moment, then your power is either triggered mentally or emotionally." I explained shortly, which was surprisingly easy considering I didn't know where to begin with such a complex feat.

"Oh, I get it! So my cool fire power thingo can be controlled by my emotions or my thoughts, right?"

"Yeah, kinda like Fang," Iggy said, clapping said birdkid on the back. "He's beast at mastering the mental trigger since he can control when he wants to go through walls, when he wants to camouflage himself, or when he wants to turn invisible and scare the panties out of Max." Then he shot me a lazy grin. I huffed and shot a half-smile at Fang in turn, rolling my eyes.

"Or," I continued, "Your powers could be like mine. Any type of strong emotions sets it off. There's a high probably that your power falls under this category because you've mentioned that you didn't know a lot of things that night. You were probably stressed and disoriented.

"Since the man upstairs," I flailed my arms skywards. "Seems to _love_ humoring me, you're going to have to learn how to control your emotions like I did."

"Like you _are_, Max. You're _still_ an emotional maniac." Iggy interrupted rather bluntly. I closed my eyes for a moment and decided to ignore him. If I let him get to me I really might just blast him off to Papua new Guinea.

"Question?" Angel asked from my right hand side, raising a pale arm as if she were in class. "How are we going to test if his powers are triggered emotionally? That means we're going to have to do something to make him really happy or really sad or something."

"You guys can buy me that new Nerf gun." Gazzy said in a heartbeat, eyes lit with the prospect of more toys. "God, I'd be _so_ happy…"

I was slightly disappointed at his attachment for material things but I only shook my head once at him.

"How 'bout we starve him?" Nudge suggested; nobody minded Gazzy's protests in the background.

"Nudge, hunger is not an emotion." Fang pointed out.

"Oh."

"We can watch The Notebook all together!" Angel decided to add, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "I love that movie! It never fails to make me cry!"

"Ange, Gazzy's a guy," Nudge pronounced each word. "They seem to be immune to those things for some reason."

But at her statement, it seemed we all simultaneously thought back to the last time we watched The Notebook and our heads whipped around to stare at Iggy. Sensing our gazes, he blurted out defensively, "Itwasbeautifulokay!"

"_Guys,_" My voice brought them back to the task at hand, "Does anyone have any better ideas?"

Iggy, who was looking thoughtful (_shocker_) all by himself towards the back of the group, suddenly raised his head and I could see the light in his pale blue eyes. _Here it comes…_

"I've got it! Gazzy, come here." He beckoned the latter innocently with a sharp nod of his head, and without hesitation Gazzy strode over to him. They were close after all. I don't even think he knew what he got himself into, trusting Iggy with manipulating his emotions. They may have been bros for life but with _Iggy…_

I barely even got to process what had happened when Iggy swung his arm back swiftly – fist clenched and everything – and brought it back down to wham Gazzy where the sun don't shine.

…

Let us all take a moment to absorb what just happened because I don't think I could even begin to describe that kind of pain.

Instantly, he fell to the ground and clutched his crotch area with his life, just screaming and screaming in agony and rolling around on the damp grass from the pain. I saw Fang wince, which just proved to me how painful it must've felt if _Fang_ winced, and both the girls start towards Gazzy with shock. I whirled around on Iggy and put on my best death glare.

"_WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?_" I know I've been doing a lot of screeching lately but I couldn't help it. There were so many situations that called for it.

"Hey, you gotta admit. It got a reaction out of him." He said, backing away from me with caution.

You don't really have to worry, readers. I'm sure Gazzy will be fine – eventually. We all have a very high pain tolerance and we're kind of used to these blows. It was just unfortunate he was taken off guard, and Iggy was infamous for his mean right hook.

We all crowded around the Gasman on the floor and even Ella ran from her spot to check on us.

"What the hell, Iggy! Do you _not_ want your brother to have any children of his own?" she chided him, punching him on the arm with force, though I knew that was nothing.

"How do you feel, buddy? Infuriated, upset, angry…?" I asked.

"Like they…were run over…by an 18-wheeler…" he coughed out, and I knew by 'they', he meant the precious jewels he was still clutching.

Nudge bit her lip and decided to point out, "I'm guessing we can tick off emotional trigger from the list."

"Woohoo!" Iggy cheered. "Now that that's been tested, we should start his training. Time's a wastin', Gaz! BRING ON DA FAYA, BEBEH!" he clapped enthusiastically and skipped off gaily to his assigned post on the field before I could strangle him.

In a nutshell, it was all downhill from here.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**Aand…scene. :) Next chapter is kind of another filler, but it's needed in the story, just like this one. **

**Just a few things to let ya'll know:**

First, a friend of mine pointed out that the length of this story is sort of overwhelming, especially with its subplots and sudden twists left and right, that she's getting quite lost. **I've decided to summarize what I have as of late for all of you**, to refresh your minds on what's happened. It's kind of lengthy, so I posted it on my profile, under the heading **RECAP OF S&L**.

Second, **I received a bunch of questions.** Thank you to all who took the time to ask. Since replying tend to become novel-length answers, I've placed all my Q&As in my profile, under the heading **QUESTIONS OBER HUR! **A few of the questions are:

**1.) Why did you make them break-up? Did you ever stop to wonder that ****Fang and Max breaking up might not work? It's not like they can turn off their feelings. (**revised)

**2.) When is the expiration date coming back? You can't just make up a****GIANT issue like that and then completely drop it!**

**3.) Where are you going with this? Is there even a plot anymore? I'm****getting very confused with all the things you have going on.**

And a truckload more pointless ones that I was kind enough to answer. I'm sure a bunch of you were wondering the same yourselves, so just go and check it out. I'll be taking both the recap and the Q&A out a fortnight from today for the sake of the story, and if you have anymore questions: **fire away!**

Also, I finally made an **e-mail specifically for Fanfiction** stuff. If you guys really need to contact me outside ff (though I'd prefer it if you just PM-ed), e-mail me at **tiffany (dot) desperatelyobvious gmail (dot) com**

Aand… I'm sorry I keep pestering you guys about music but I'm just so in love with it. Finally, after 2 years, I'm over my Alternative phase. Sorta. **I'm kinda getting into Indie music now** (Two Door Cinema Club FTW!) and I was wondering if **any of you guys have fantastical Indie music you'd like to share** with moi?

*Catdog, anyone? (lol random line)

And lastly, I dunno what made me update (especially since I'm not yet done with future chapters) but I'm guessing it's because I'm so **hyped for Harry Potter!** Woohoo! I'm watching it tomorrow night with my friends. Our whole batch bought the cinema and we're going all out (well, some of us), wands, robes, face paint and everything. We're that devoted. How are you spending your Harry Potter Day? (Watching with family, pre-movie marathon of all seven books, etc.)

Again, **thank you for all those who reviewed and subscribed even when I was idle!** You guys honestly don't know how happy you guys make me. **Please review some more and let me know what you think!**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	41. Practice Makes Perfect

August 10, 2011. Wednesday. (1:13am)

**Ho mai gas… I fail you guys. I'm **_**so**_** sorry. DX**

Many thanks to **Fireflies371**, **michelle**, **book phan44**, **volleychik12**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **Twilight Gleek**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **AnikaandAj**, **Birdwatched**, **SharpestSatire**, **mysterywriter94**, **MYWINTERFIREFLY4**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **SomethingAboutDarkAngels** and **ollietrombone **for reviewing! I really freakin' love you all. In a totally non-lesbian way. In fact, I should probably write a oneshot for you guys (something I have in mind) but it might take a really long time to finish the process. :|

This chapter is dedicated to** It's Fnicking Awesomeness **for being my **350****th**** reviewer**. Woohoo! :)

ALSO, I just wanted to give a shout out to my friend **SeaSaltChocolate** for drawing the girls from chapter 18. Oh gosh, she's amazing! I mean, compared to my blob dogs and cauliflower trees. I replied to your e-mail but I don't think you've checked. Anyways, thank you so, so much! :D

On with chapter 41. **Enjoy!**

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Gazzy's training; attempt #5_

"Concentrate, Gaz! You can do it!" I encouraged him a little ways to his right, bending my knees and keeping an eye out for any possible hazards.

We were all spread out towards the edge of the forest, our backyard running on for yards and yards set up with multiple wooden planks for targets. I was stationed towards the right corner of the field closest to our house, with Fang a couple of meters behind me and Iggy much farther back. Nudge, who I could see was mumbling to herself, was standing right beside the water hose and surrounded by at least five fire extinguishers.

"I'm tryin'! _I'm tryin'!_" He whined back, thrusting his hands out in the universal 'pushing-a-heavy-door' gesture. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth. In fact, if we were cartoons I could just picture Gazzy with a protruding vein on his forehead. Yes, I could _clearly_ see he was trying.

"Go, go Gazzy, you can do it! You're so snazzy you won't-" Nudge began to cheer, lifting her arms and pumping her fists in the air like the time I'd watched her practice for a cheer competition at her school.

_Dear God, no._

Reacting instinctively, I chucked a pinecone at her that was conveniently by my feet, since I couldn't very well slap my palm over her mouth. She was at least a baseball field away; the pinecone hit her right smack in the middle of her forehead.

"_AGCK!_ What the heck is with you and pinecones, Max!" She shrieked from afar. Despite the distance, I could see the daggers that she was glaring at me.

"Don't even start, Nudge!" I responded just as loudly.

"Quiet guys! You're making me lose my focus!" Angel put in, holding her index and middle finger to her temple as she stared at the back of her brother's figure. She was standing almost directly behind him, trying to help him isolate his thoughts and decide on a focal point, whatever that meant.

I decided to comply, and all our gazes shifted back to Gazzy…who was still posing as he was a few moments ago.

I'm sure it wasn't that hard, right? I mean, if I was able to slightly control my emotions then concentrating on 'turning on' an ability must be next to simple.

My mind was filled a combination of chants and prayers as we all watched the Gasman in his ridiculous pose. I didn't want to be the one to point out that he looked constipated beyond belief, but I'm sure everyone was thinking it. It was nearly impossible to keep a straight face and look all badass and prepared while my little brother's like _right there_, half-squatting and concentrating so determinedly.

_C'mon Gazzy! You've gotta master this! You can do this. Oh gods, please let him get this. I believe in him-!_

_BBBBRRRRRTTTTT!_

My head whipped around to exclaim at him with disgust, but instead of looking at Gazzy my eyes zeroed in on his sister behind him, who was stiff from her head to her toes and had the worst look of revulsion on her face.

_Oh, the poor baby…_

We all rushed to her as she started wheezing for air, tears uncontrollably streaming down her face as she clawed at her throat. Gazzy bent down to try to help her but she just pushed him away with a look of horror, scared that he might let one rip as an aftershock.

"Back up, guys. She needs air." I said, warding the flock off by a few paces to let her breathe.

Nudge crouched down and crawled to her anyways, intent on helping her. I knew they haven't been getting along these past few days but even I was concerned. Gazzy's gas can pack a mean punch.

"Oh my gosh! Are you okay? Do you need water? A barf bag? Anything?" she asked hurriedly.

"Dude, I think she'll need an ambulance," Iggy said from beside me.

"Sorry, sis," Gazzy said apologetically but he didn't look embarrassed in the slightest. "My bowels haven't been moving lately."

Well, then. I wasn't so far off from my constipation theory after all.

_Gazzy's training; attempt #14_

"Good job, Gaz!" I praised him and was able to clap him on the back once I'd reached him.

He looked proud of himself as he watched the flames wave in the roiling air, finally able to manifest his power on his 14th try. The flaming plank of wood was even a good 30 feet away; we were all obviously impressed he was able to aim that far.

"So what were you thinking of?" Fang asked when he reached us too.

"I dunno. I just…it just came to me. Did you see how it shot out of my hands like magic!" Gazzy ecstatically exclaimed, and I was glad we were actually getting somewhere. At least now he won't hate himself so much for almost killing Iggy. He now has less chances of accidentally hurting anyone anytime soon.

"High-five, buddy!" Iggy raised his palm and I noticed that Gazzy didn't hesitate the contact.

"Uhh…guys. I hate to ruin this jolly moment and everything but the fire's seriously _spreading!_" Angel voice suddenly cut in with panic. I looked towards the targets and saw that the fire _has_ in fact spread to the two nearest wooden planks and was growing bigger every second.

"Gazzy, control your powers!" I said to him, watching with wide eyes as the fire flickered and heightened skywards. More targets were getting caught on fire since we didn't space them too far from each other. We didn't expect Gazzy's fire aim to be dead center, hence the multiple planks. But we didn't predict something like this would happen either.

Almost immediately, Nudge and Fang broke off from our little group, thinking quickly on their feet. A few seconds later, I could already see Fang sprinting towards the targets with the water hose in hands, the rubber pipe bent in his right hand grip to prevent wasting the water. On the opposite end of the field, I saw Nudge heft one of the fire extinguishers in her arms and start towards the fire too.

From beside me, Gazzy started posing in his constipation stance again, trying to control the intensity and growth of the fire, but none of us were really paying attention to him.

I could only stand there and watch as Nudge and Fang reached the fire at the same time and simultaneously tried to kill it. Nudge literally yanked off the nozzle, handle and pressure gauge of the extinguisher with her hand in one go, manipulating the metal to twist and break off in one touch. And Fang aimed the water hose the moment he got to the first target that was lit, hosing it down to a soggy piece of wood within seconds.

I don't know how it happened really, but with the fate the entire flock seemed to have, Nudge and Fang had actually both aimed at the same target when they got there, each standing on the other side.

I think you can see where I'm going with this.

Fang was able to put out the fire first, but the strong torrent of the water shot past the target and into Nudge's face, drenching her from her head to her torso. Blindly, Nudge faced the open-ended fire extinguisher in Fang's direction, completely covering his front side with the frothy chemical.

And while all that was happening, Gazzy was finally able to sort of turn down the intensity of the fire he produced, reducing them to pathetic tongues on the sooty planks.

I knew what went down could've seriously progressed into a forest fire, but I really couldn't help bursting into hysterics. I really couldn't.

The looks of a dripping wet Nudge with her usually poufy hair plastered to her scalp and an equally shocked all-white ex-boyfriend who – may I remind you – _always_ wore black was enough to dissipate the tense air as everyone else started to laugh.

I definitely committed that image to memory.

_Gazzy's training; attempt #29_

As seen from just his first day, I could already tell it wouldn't take Gazzy long for him to perfect his new power.

Already he was shooting at all the targets I told him to aim with precision and accuracy, and we found out that he was able to shoot fire not just from his palms but from the knuckles of his balled fists as well.

He was taking position as he focused his gaze on the wooden torch, a much smaller version of his earlier targets now. We'd even placed a third of the amount we planted on the field the first time, since he was learning so quickly.

Nudge and Angel didn't need to stand guard by the water hose and the extinguishers so much anymore that they were chatting a few paces from Gazzy to his left. I noted that Fang was looking off into space; and Iggy was picking at dirt under his nails, even if he couldn't really see them.

I watched as he thrust his arm, a flash of red leaving his hand. Majority of his aims were spot on at best and a little shaky at worst, but for some reason the flames went haywire this time.

My eyes followed the flying fireball as it swerved past its target. It sailed in the air like mad, and when my eyes followed where it was headed, I shot into action.

My feet couldn't take me fast enough to him, and my voice seemed to reach him a little too late.

"_Fang!_" I screamed, hoping that was enough to alarm him and get him to react.

With relief, I noted that he was actually paying attention as he smoothly ducked out of the way, looking all bamf in the process since he didn't even have to uncross his arms from his chest.

It was just too bad that a few feet behind him, Iggy was spacing off like a total idiot and got smacked by the fireball right in the face.

"_Shit!_" I cussed and again, we all left our posts and crowded around his crumpled form on the ground, who was groaning from the force of the hit. It was strong enough to send him flying backwards, and I think his still almost completely-healing shoulder hit a rock.

"Iggy! Not again! Oh, I'm so so sorry! I don't know what happened! Oh God… I don't…I…" Gazzy started rambling, looking like he wanted to help Iggy but didn't know how.

"It's alright, Gaz. It feels like you shoved the sun into my face, but it's all good. I guess this is how it feels to be Max, y'know, always blushing…" he said. He was rubbing his face with a hand but you could still clearly see the smile on his face. I lightly slapped his injured shoulder.

"Oh, shut up," I hissed at him, and to everyone else I said, "Okay guys. Nothing to see here. Back to your places."

The rest of the flock started to walk back but my loud exclaim made everyone turn around again, and they too didn't really know how to react.

When Iggy removed his hand from his face, I took in the bright red sheen of his flesh that I'm sure would be healed by the evening. The rawness wasn't so bad, but the loss of his facial hair was what did it.

Particularly the loss of his blond eyebrows.

My fist jammed into my mouth in an attempt to cover my snickers, but Nudge wasn't at all discreet about it. The moment she saw his face, she was clutching her stomach and everything.

"What? What's so funny?" Iggy asked, not understanding whatever joke was going on. He self-consciously fingered his cheeks and nose but I didn't think he knew that his eyebrows would actually get singed off. Luckily for him, he wasn't missing any patches of hair on his head.

Fang, who wasn't really one to beat around the bush, lightly patted him on the back as though with comfort.

"Iggy, your eyebrows are missing," he said with mock solemnity, but you could see he was trying not to laugh himself.

"_WHAT?_"

"Well, karma's a bitch," I said with satisfaction, thanking whatever higher power was up there for getting even with Iggy for his earlier comments.

"Yeah, well so is the time it takes for a hickey to fade," he retorted, bringing back our topic from breakfast just to focus the embarrassment back to me.

It was then that I punched his injured shoulder. Hard.

_Gazzy's training; attempt #37_

I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't scared.

No, I wasn't shaking or having second thoughts of backing out, but I think I was allowed to be afraid once Fang had suggested that we all stand scattered in the field amongst the remaining three wooden targets.

Gazzy fared well today. I knew we would continue to train him in the next few days until he had absolute control over his power, but for a day's trial he could already shoot with great aim and bend fire to his will. We didn't know the extent of his abilities yet, so Angel suggested we test how far he can shoot the next time.

For one of the last attempts however, Fang wanted to see if he could manipulate fire under pressure.

Knowing that the lives of his family were at the stake, Gazzy would be forced to concentrate more. A lot was depending on him.

The sun was already setting as I watched Gazzy's form in the distance, preparing himself. The angle of the sun cast long dark shadows across the field, eight in all. I wanted to wrap this up real quick, especially since the cold night air was starting to seep into my clothes, but on the other hand I couldn't rush Gazzy.

"Ready when you are!" Nudge shouted to him, and I saw his tiny head nod once apprehensively.

From around the stick of wood I was standing beside, I sent Angel and Fang a look.

Then, I heard a small grunt, and once I saw the orange and red ball coming towards us, I took that as my cue.

"_DUCK!_" I shouted and all five of us went down to avoid the oncoming fireball.

I fell on my chest and hands; and since we were all kind of clumped together, spaced unevenly, I think I accidentally kicked Iggy on his injured shoulder again when I head him curse a few paces behind me. Remind me to laugh about that later.

When it was clear that it was over, we all got up slowly and met Gazzy, who flew towards us and ran to a stop before Nudge.

"Hey! I can't believe you guys all ducked! Do you not have faith in my awesome skills?" He said sourly, flailing his arms.

"Sorry, kiddo." I ruffled his blond hair when I reached him, a kind smile on my face. "But I kinda wanna keep my eyebrows, thank you very much."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Dark blond hair wet and clad in thick pajamas, I felt at ease in the warmth of our insulated house. Things seemed okay as of now – Gazzy's training was a success, hanging out with the flock was almost normal now, and no one was hunting us down as of late. I could very well fall asleep without too much load on my chest, but then I remembered I had a little something to attend to.

I was anticipating the faint vibration of the Jeb phone in my hoodie pocket as I made my way around the second floor, when suddenly a toned, warm arm slipped around my shoulders and a familiar voice whispered lightly in my ear, "Hey."

I wasn't going to admit this out loud, but that nearly made me shit a brick.

"Sweet baby Jesus, _could you not do that!_" I said angrily through my teeth, shoving Fang away and trying to calm my erratic heart.

Fang didn't look the least bit deterred or apologetic as he grinned down at me, shoving his hands into his pants pockets.

"So where are you heading off to?" he asked, but I wasn't letting go of my annoyance just yet.

"_Seriously!_ It's bad enough you could turn invisible and go through walls! You're like, the ultimate creeper! Please don't let me have to worry about you seeing things you shouldn't," I said, and however confusing or unclear that might sound I knew he'd understood.

It was honestly worrisome to know that Fang could, I dunno, _sneak into my room and scare the life out of me_, or maybe something even more perverted if you catch my drift.

Luckily Fang was a good boy, despite what people might stereotype him at first glance. I knew he was respectable and wouldn't use his powers for those means. He was still hormonal; I mean, he's a _15-year old boy_, but he had his limits. I wouldn't date some maniac.

He raised an eyebrow.

"You mean like catching Iggy secretly dancing to the High School Musical Dance-Along in his room? Because I'm very well aware of that. Thanks."

I laughed at the thought. "Wait. Iggy's blind," I stated dumbly.

"Yeah, and the sky is blue, but there are just some things we'll never know," he replied unperturbed as he lightly rocked on the heels of his bare feet. "Anyway, what are you doing roaming the halls in the middle of the night? Hoping to sneak into my room for my company?"

Fang's teasing tone accompanied by his signature smirk was enough to make me almost punch his arm but I blushed hotly instead.

"Actually, I _was_ looking for you," I said, trying not to look too embarrassed as I stared him right back in the eye.

"_Me?_ Whatever for?" He raised an eyebrow again, something he does a lot, and however gay that line might've been from someone else, Fang made it sound normal.

"Well I was thinking about what my mom said this morning. About sparring, I mean. I really think we should start training again, especially since we've been at risk a lot recently."

I launched into a lengthy discussion about the details I've already figured out, liking the idea more as I said it out loud. I knew I should've been telling these to Angel, our actual flock _leader_, instead of my best friend but I felt more comfortable confiding in Fang first; and to honest, I've never really thought of Angel as the leader ever since I came back. I followed her instructions, but on my own accord. I wouldn't give in to her dictatorship just yet.

I wasn't really processing what Fang was doing as I continued to explain my plans, just staring into his eyes as I expounded on the whereabouts and made rapid hand gestures in my tirade. I was so caught up in trying to make him agree with me, despite the fact that he hasn't spoken a word yet, that I failed to notice how much closer he was getting. A few moments ago, he was leaning against the white wall with his hands in his pockets; now he was only standing a few inches on front of me.

It was only when he'd raised his arm and brushed the damp hair away from my neck that I'd caught my breath, his fingers lightly brushing against the sensitive flesh where my shoulder met my neck.

"I'm really sorry about this, by the way," he said in his usual low voice, almost inaudible even in the silence of the hall. Just from the way he was stroking the area gently, I knew he was talking about the darn hickey.

While in my thoughts, I was completely mortified that my family had seen it and the fact that Iggy wouldn't let me live it down the whole night with his hickey puns, I tried not to let it get to me. It was just a tiny dot in my canvas of problems.

"It's fine. It'll fade eventually, anyway," I whispered, trying not to sound too bitter that he hadn't back me up in the entirety of Iggy's jokes.

I couldn't help but sound breathless from his touch, his hand lingering a little longer than necessary. I stood frozen as his hand travelled upwards to tuck a lock of my hair behind my ear, my skin tingling where his fingers grazed them. His eyes were focused on his fingers, a trance-like gaze almost hypnotizing him.

When it seemed to go on too long for something along the lines of 'friendly', I hurriedly took a step back and slapped his hand away, making his snap out of it too.

"Don't, please. _Friends_ don't do that kind of thing," I reprimanded him, my eyes cast downwards as I felt my eyebrows scrunch up in confusion. It was sort of weird to say those words to Fang, but then again we've only been 'broken up' for a day. It was going to take some getting used to.

Luckily, I was saved from having to look at Fang by the vibration of the Jeb phone in my hoodie pocket, immediately whipping it out in my hand and typing the password to unlock the phone.

I hadn't realized how unusual and surprising this might've been for someone else like Fang until the suspicious tone of his voice brought me back to the present.

"What are you doing using the phone Jeb gave you?" he asked warily, eyeing the device in my hands as I stopped typing on the sixth character of the first password.

_Shit._

I had forgotten no one knew I had access to Jeb's accounts through this phone, and I had even publicly denounced using his birthday gift to me. I couldn't blame Fang for his next actions, since I looked like such a bad liar.

"Oh, it's my back-up," I said smoothly, but even then it was not enough. Fang would've known if I had decided to use a back-up phone, and he knows I would never use or depend on anything Jeb gave us. Anything associated with him was considered sketchy and unreliable.

He nodded once, slowly, and before even my enhanced eyes could follow what was happening he'd swiped the small device from my fingers and turned his back on me.

"Well then I don't think you'd mind if I went through your back-up phone then, _would you?_" he asked, beginning to start typing away on the small keypad with his arms raised.

I wouldn't have been worried if any other person outside of the flock decided to steal the Jeb phone. I was able to set up three passwords to unlock from the wallpaper, and each password consisted of eight digits – a total of one hundred million possibilities. An ordinary human would've taken a very, _very_ long time to figure out even the first code, but for the flock, hacking was our specialty. Nudge took the gold for hacking – what with her metal and psychometry abilities, plus her impressive knowledge and skills for all things technology – but we all knew how to pick a lock to a door and access encrypted security files to some extent. Fang was no exception.

From behind him I could see that he'd passed the first lock already, thumbs pressing buttons rapidly and quickly backspacing upon error. It was a wonder why the phone wasn't going into lockdown but he must've done something else to it too.

"Fang, _give it back to me!_" I reached for it, wrapping my arms around his back and clawing for it left and right. It was no use though, because he'd only raise his arms higher and continue on undisturbed. Even with my height of 5'9 and standing on my tiptoes didn't help much; he was much taller than I was, and no amount of slaps or punches to his back fazed him.

"Fang, I'm not even kidding. _Give it back!_" I snarled threateningly, still continuing in my fruitless attempts at reaching for it. He completely ignored me and turned around to face the other way.

Now facing his back, I suddenly got an idea. My lips curled back deviously with satisfaction at the thought, and I tried to take a few steps back as quietly as I could.

When he was at least four feet ahead of me, I took a running start and launched myself on Fang's broad back with a battle cry, making him take an unbalanced step left and slightly grunt from shock. With one arm precariously wrapped around his neck, I struggled with the other to reach out and snatch the cellphone from his still-typing hands.

"_Get off me,_" he said under his breath, swaying to try and shake me off, but I was relentless. I _needed_ to get that phone back, more than he knew.

I was waiting for a text from one of Jeb's colleagues concerning his current experiment, and each time I heard about whatever he was working on there were never any specific details. I didn't know what it was about but it still might help me somehow. I just had to find out what.

When one second I was hunched on Fang's swaying figure, arms clutching him for dear life, the next I was sprawled on the marble floor, my elbows and knees blossoming with burst of pain at my joints. Stunned, I completely crumpled to the ground and took a moment to bite my lip from the throbbing in certain areas, trying to grasp what the hell just happened.

I turned my head to glare at Fang's towering figure as he continued to solve for the third code, disbelieving that he just did that. Did he really just allow me to pass _through him _to shake me off? Had he really made me _fall through his body_ like a hand passing through running water, letting me hurt myself in the process?

At this realization, _boy_, you could just imagine all the red I was seeing.

I picked myself back up and rubbed at my sore arm, my eyes never leaving the back of Fang's dark head. Marching right up to him, anger still at its peak, I shoved him in the chest against the wall harshly, inevitably 'turning on' my ability. I could've easily tried to get my emotions in check but there were just some things I couldn't completely control.

At the impact, Fang's breath left his body in a whoosh and he'd loosened his grip on the phone. It flipped twice in the air before I nimbly caught it, the anger leaving me a few moments later at my victory.

"_Oh Fang,_" I chastised him transcendentally, bending forward to his leaning figure against the wall as he still tried to catch his breath from the force of my assault. "Never play games with a girl who can play better."

"Max…what're you hiding?" he growled, panting heavily as he glared at me through his over-grown fringe.

"Well one, I don't appreciate you going through my things. You of all people should know that's one of my pet peeves, as with any other girl for that matter," I said, offering my hand to him. He calculatingly stared at it for a few seconds before deciding to take it, helping him up from his slump to stand erect once more. "Two, you should know when to trust me, Fang. You're my best friend, but there are just some things that are meant to be kept secret," I said, looking into his eyes so he would understand what I meant. I didn't mean to make him to feel bad that I kept this from him; I just couldn't confide this particular detail to him now. We weren't completely fine yet.

I squared my shoulders. "You have your secrets and I have mine."

From the way Fang's jaw set, I could tell he didn't like this. Not one bit. But he couldn't argue with me anymore since I knew he was probably keeping secrets from me too. Everyone had them.

"Look, I'm getting tired," I continued, and to prove my point a tiny yawn escaped my mouth. "I'll see you in the morning. G'night, Fang." And as a last minute decision, I went on my tiptoes again and kissed him on the cheek quickly like I used to on most nights, still hoping he wasn't too upset about the whole phone ordeal.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, my eyes trying to convey my meaning.

I saw the corner of his lip tug upwards as he reached over to ruffle my hair affectionately like a kid. Almost brotherly. We were getting there.

"No more good night kisses, Max. Friends don't do that kind of thing," he quoted me.

Time stood still as I stared at him, chin tilted up to look into his eyes levelly.

I didn't know how wrong I was when I thought it would be easy to get over Fang. I was good at moving on. I had learned to shrug things off and get back up from any and all adversities.

Except maybe now.

It would take some getting used to, I realized. In fact, I could honestly admit that I've become somewhat dependent on his guidance and advice since we've been dating. Sometimes I'd get the unexplainable urge to just be with him, to stay in his arms or even just to sit next to him on the couch; people always feel that way with the ones they love. Fang was that comfortable and familiar someone, but I had to do things on my own now. I'd let it go on too long that I was growing soft. It was high time I become Maximum Ride again.

As if on cue, I gave him one last meaningful look before we both turned on our heels to walk away from the other. And as I distanced myself further from the boy that I still loved, I forced myself to smile once again. If I could do this now, then I'm sure it would get easier with time.

Breaking up was just hard to do.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**So…** it's pretty freakin' obvious that they're still adjusting. Who's now sad? :))

**GUESSES! I WANT GUESSES!** Before the big unveiling of Max's expiration date (_dun dun DUN…_) **3 big other 'somethin'-somethin's'** are going to happen in chapter 43, 45 and 46 (estimation). I **want ya'll to guess what might happen** and I'll dedicate the chapter to you. ;) And yes, this means Max finally tells her flock about her expiration date in **chapter 47**. Calm yo' tits. It's comin'. It's comin'.

**Oh! Funny story! **Okay, so one of my friends in school is an avid reader and a really great writer. We got to talking ever since I started reading her story and I decided to show her some of my original writing – chapter 1(she's the only one I've ever shown it to, and she's not even my best friend or anything, just a really close seatmate). Anyways, so I edited it like, a bajillion times and worked my butt off to fix all the miniscule mistakes, because in real life I'm so insecure of my writing. Like seriously, I don't even allow _Tori_ to see my writing. I only post on ff because I don't know you guys, lol. This is how our conversation went after she read it and IM-ed me.

Beatrice: Tiff

Tiff: Hey :)

Beatrice: So…

Beatrice: I read your shit story

_Beatrice is typing…_

AT THIS POINT MY HEART FELT LIKE IT FELL OUT OF MY BUTT AND MY SOUL CRIED AND I THOUGHT I'D NEVER WRITE AGAIN OMG. I DID NOT WANT TO KNOW WHAT SHE HAD TO SAY, AND I CRIED AND I CRIED AND I DIED AND I DIED! AND THEN-!

Beatrice: Y'know Tiff, you beat yourself up too much. :))

Beatrice: You accidentally put again instead of against in the first part, and you love your run-ons, but I swear I love your plot and your writing in 3rd person. It was AMAZING!

And I was like, "…Wha?"

**This is what happened, lol.** XD I didn't have a title for the story yet so I named the file 'MA SHIT – Chapter 1'.

Oh gosh…I should think of better default titles. -_- I really almost _quit_ writing from the embarrassment.

**ON MORE IMPORTANT MATTERS:** Heads up, guys! One of the reasons I've also taken _fo-evah_ to update is because **I'm co-authoring a story with maximumrain3** :D We're still planning the details and everything so it'll probably take a long time before we start posting. In the meantime, could you please check her out? Like, _pretty please?_ (Okay, so maybe a lot of you already know her. Like, _duh._ It's _maximumrain3_. Haha!) Does '_Welcoming the Heartache_' and '_Of Sun and Moon_' ring a bell for you? :) She is my TWIN, guys. We have so many similarities it is so creepy and awesome at the same time, I swear.

**ANOTHER SHOUT OUT** goes out to my best friend here on ff, **SharpestSatire**. I guess you can say I'm advertising here but I swear, you guys should check out her story _**'21 Years'**_. It is so f*cking legit. She sounds like Max from the old books; 100 billion times better than JP! Honest to God. As in, I love her writing. It is so damn badass. GO. GO NOW.

Wait.

**REVIEW, THEN CHECK OUT '21 YEARS' AND MAXIMUMRAIN3!**

And now I'm wondering…**are you left- or right-handed? :)**

Because I do everything with my right…except for when I brush my teeth. It's weird. :\

**Anyone here going to World Youth Day in Spain next week? **Anyone? (lol, I'm so talkative; I guess I just miss you guys so much haha!)

**So..yeah. come at me with yo' guesses. Check out maximumrain3 and '21 Years' by SharpestSatire. Answer my questions if you'd like. :P**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	42. Here We Go

Nov. 13, 2011. Sunday. (2:14am)

**Goodness gracious great balls of fire. **

I'm really, _really_ sorry for the lateness of this, but school's been kicking my ass and I've been going through a really tough time lately. I'm just so, so sorry to you all.

Muchas gracias to **SomethingAboutDarkAngels**, **maximumpotter101**, **book phan44**, **DancingintheRayne**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **FaxandReading**, **fireflies371**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **Birdwatched**, **mehrong**, **ShortLittlePixie**, **SharpestSatire**, **Time2Wake**, **lilabill1**, **Icy. and Fire** and **Sarcastic-Girl-With-Wings** for reviewing. You guys are infinitely the best, I swear.

Enough with the stalling (besides, I have a much longer AN in the bottom :P); I hope you **enjoy chapter 42!**

* * *

Angel just had to swallow down her pride. That was all there was to it.

The 7-year old girl didn't want to admit it at first, but there was no use denying that she was at an impasse. These past few days her and her flock has been idle, and the only thing they've accomplished was teaching Gazzy how to control his powers. Angel couldn't help but also feel responsible for both the Bruiser attacks in California and in Max's school, and she wanted to take responsibility for it but didn't know how.

She didn't know how to fix this.

Max was her last resort, and the most knowledgeable between her and Nudge. Angel would've sought counsel from her 12-year old sister but then that would've just been suicide; their relationship was already on thin ice nowadays.

Besides, Max had more experience in this field, especially since she's been leader for the most part of her life. She would have more advice and reassurances to give her.

_Okay, deep Breathes. Inhale. Exhale._

Angel gripped the doorknob tightly and twisted it before she could back out. Upon entering Max's pastel blue room as quietly as she could, she immediately spotted her mother figure seated on the piano bench. An almost somber sound resonated throughout the spans of the bedroom as Max played, and Angel couldn't help but enjoy the fluid tune despite its pessimistic undertone.*

Her eyes never left the back of Max's crouched figure over the piano, her bandaged wings slightly unruffled behind her.

Focusing on her still form, the depressing thought that Angel could only _dream_ of becoming as great as Max passed through her mind.

Even then, with her broken body and her despondent attitude nowadays, Angel knew she was jealous of the former leader. There, she said it.

She couldn't fathom how Max is still able to function after all the adversities she's gone through. One at the age of 16 shouldn't have to suffer the way Max did, and Angel looked up to her for her perseverance and determination. She'd even prayed to a god she didn't believe in that she would one day grow up to be like her. Praying, wishing, and wanting _so_ badly to become as smart, as funny, as beautiful, and as strong as Max.

"Angel." Max instantly acknowledged her, her long fingers still gliding over the keys in swift motions but pressing lightly to lower volume. She didn't turn her head to check, and there was no question in her voice as she said her name.

"Hi Max," the little girl replied almost meekly, before clearing her throat and moving forward to sit on Max's bed. From there, she was able to see Max at a clearer angle. Her back was still facing towards Angel but Max's arms were in her line of sight.

The gloomy song didn't cease to resound as Max continued to play. Trying to decipher the emotions written across Max's face as she secretly stared at her profile, Angel could only tell that her mind was elsewhere. It would have been easier to read Max's mind but she's given up on trying to get past the mind blocks. There was no certain emotion that Angel could grasp from Max other than the simply distracted look on her face; Max was getting better at hiding her feelings, becoming more and more like Fang each day.

"So what's up?" Max asked conversationally, voice pleasant.

Angel let out in one nervous breath, "I'm going to go straight to the point about this."

"Okay."

Angel watched as Max's fingers pressed the last few keys to the song, her thigh twitching as she stepped on the pedal underneath the piano to prolong the note.

"So you know the Bruisers trying to hunt us down haven't made a move lately."

"Of course."

"And everyone in the flock is almost done healing from their various wounds."

"Yeah."

Max held her wrists above the piano keys for a moment, as if deciding whether she should play another song.

"And that majority of the flock seems to really like it here in Greymoore."

"Mhmm…"

"So I was thinking…"

"Go on."

Max gently placed a red cloth over the black keys, adjusting the sheet to accommodate the length and width.

"I-I was thinking maybe-"

"Just get to the point."

In a burst of courage, Angel blurted out rather loudly in the silence. "_Max, I need your help._"

At this, the older girl immediately _slammed_ the fallboard of her piano, the harsh sound breaking the air in half as it cracked and transformed into something noir and suffocating. Angel tried not to dither at the sudden change of atmosphere, but she really couldn't help it.

Hostile Max was back.

Angel tried not to look too scared, smoothing her skirt over her lap once and placing her folded moist hands over it.

Max's entire body was rigid. With her hands still clutching the fallboard, she ever so slightly tilted her head by the minutest of degrees; the side of her face, her cheekbones, her long eyelashes and a single icy hazel orb facing Angel as Max stared at her with disdain.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me," Max whispered, and her voice sounded so utterly disgusted by the mere thought; that Angel even had the _gull_ to approach Max of all people to get help on what to do as a leader and how to execute her next plans of action.

But by this time, Angel was desperate. She found no shame as her voice rose an octave higher with panic, and she scooted her butt on the edge of the bed forward to get closer to Max and beg.

"But I'm not! Max, I _don't-_," she cried, then immediately cut off to catch her breath and form her next coherent thoughts. "Everyday I can't help but worry Bruisers would ambush us, but I can't make us move. I _can't_. There's just so much going on, Max, and _I don't know what to do!_"

A little girl like Angel could only handle so many problems. She has to please her family and keep them safe at the same time. If the balance of their well-beings and their safety were to tip over, then they could very well mean the end of her leadership.

The thing is, majority – if not all – of the flock already didn't view her as leader. And she knew this. There was no leader. They went with Angel's plans because they had no other choice, and no one else was crazy enough to take on Max's role. If Angel were to make even the tiniest mistake, then she was done for.

She watched as Max spun gracefully on the piano bench to face Angel, a thoughtful look on her face. Angel could feel hope fluttering in her chest as Max tapped her index's knuckle against her lip, eyebrows scrunched up – that maybe Max had a heart after all and she would help Angel despite being deemed a traitor.

"Y'know what?" Max mused, still looking off into the distance in thought, "…I can't seem to remember where I left my camera. I should definitely record this and post it on Youtube or something…" she finished, crushing Angel's spirits to dust.

"Max, _please._"

"Hmm… Have you tried making a peace treaty with the Bruisers? Word on the street is they befriend anyone who bakes them snicker doodles," Max continued on, faux whispering as if she were actually telling a secret; and the tone of her voice dripping with sarcasm, as well as the cold look in her eyes was enough to make Angel feel so utterly embarrassed. That maybe going to Max for advice wasn't such a good idea after all.

It was difficult to describe where Angel truly stood with Max. See, Angel admired her mother figure so much so that she wanted to grow up just like her. She used to diligently follow in Max's footsteps, but eventually she grew tired of just trailing from behind. She wanted her time in the limelight; and the more she watched and learned from Max, the more this idea of superseding appealed to her, up until it grew far too out of hand that she started to believe that she was even better than Max.

She was only seven years old, and yet she had more powers than any of the flock members. She was exceedingly powerful – especially with her ability to read and control minds – and she knew everything there was to know.

Angel was ready.

And so she made her move.

It was perfect because she didn't fail to notice how Max got weaker everyday. Every headache and every nose bleed furthered brought about the opportunity to replace her. This was Angel's opening. She could also use this chance to impress Max with what she already knew, and try all that she's learned. In Angel's mind, it was a win-win situation.

But now that all was said and done, she felt so stressed and muddled and _flustered_. Max made being leader look like a breeze, when in fact it was full of hard choices that would drive a person to insanity.

She was embarrassed, because she's only been leader for a few weeks and already she's come to begging the ex-leader. That she's gone through so many lengths to get to where she was now, only to get shot down in the end.

Angel restarted again calmly, trying to placate Max. "Okay, I'll admit that I'm at a stalemate, but now I'm here to ask for your advice; I'm reaching out to you."

"Oh, this is _rich_," the older girl scoffed harshly,_ "_But wasn't what I was doing not enough for the flock? And I quote, _"Those were poor decisions. What do we accomplish doing that?"_" she mimicked in a surprisingly high soprano close to Angel's, before crossing her arms over her chest and raising an eyebrow – her signature stance.

"Why would you ask for _my_ help?"

Though Angel would never admit it out loud, she still believed in Max. She didn't think Max always made the right decisions but she was still brilliant. Max always knew what to do next, no matter how helpless their situation was. She always had a plan B, and she never gave up. That was the greatest lesson Angel has ever learned from her: to keep moving forward.

"Max, set aside your hatred for me just this once and help me out. For the sake of the flock. _Please._ I wouldn't have gone to you unless it was necessary," Angel begged, instead of blurting the retort on the tip of her tongue; she hated it whenever Max would throw the things she said right back in her face.

Then there was suddenly a moment of silence, when Angel couldn't seem to hear their hearts beating or their lungs breathing; it was almost deafening. Angel looked at Max pleadingly; Bambi eyes the last in her bag of tricks. She was hoping the former leader could understand just by her eyes that Angel really needed her now more than ever, but Angel could tell Max was shutting her out. With the look in her adorable baby blue eyes that tried to prise even a little bit of encouragement, all hope was lost when Max's slicing gaze lingered on hers for a second – sending a freezing shiver down Angel's spine – before turning her chin away in the next.

And that was that.

She could grovel all she wanted, get down on her knees and cry her eyes out, but something about the turn of her head made it final. That once Max decided on something, she wasn't changing her mind.

As she walked the excruciatingly long path towards the bedroom door, she drowned in the feeling of being rejected and hurt. She thought that at least Max – her mother, her sister, her friend – would sympathize with her struggles, but then it dawned on her…

That she rejected and hurt Max just the same.

Max was still angry and bitter by what Angel had done. Max was never going to forgive her. And Max made sure that Angel wouldn't forget that.

Angel could finally tell that Max buried the pain deep in her heart. She never thought that she would hold the grudge for so long – Max wasn't the type of person that let anything faze her, she got over things and made do with what she had – but maybe this was something she shouldn't have messed with.

Three more steps to the exit. She was almost gone when the regret that swirled through her veins froze over, stilling her in place as a voice echoed throughout the bedroom.

"_You have to think._"

Angel spun around on her heel, pronouncing each syllable slowly, politely. "_Excuse me?_"

"You have to think about each and every flock member individually – their needs, their wants, their feelings; then as a whole; then focus on the current situation and what would be best," Max said, still poised on the piano bench. Her arms were still crossed, face set in a scowl, and she wouldn't raise her head to look at Angel. She stared intently at a spot on the marble floor.

"As of right now, you have two choices," Max continued, "We can move –"

"But-"

"_I said_ we can move - that's our safest option. We're all pretty healthy enough to travel, and we can continue the Gasman's training elsewhere. We have enough funds and support, and as much as I hate to depend on them, my parents could easily find us a new safe house. The Bruisers are on our trail but it would take them much longer to track us down in another state. By then, we can prepare ourselves."

"But the flock really likes it here," Angel decided to put in, biting her lip after the words left her mouth.

Max replied without skipping a beat, "You can take into consideration everyone's opinion but at the end of the day it is only _your_ decision. You can't please everyone."

"And what's the other option?"

"Simple," Max shrugged, finally lifting her chin to meet Angel's eyes.

"We stay and fight."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_I easily rounded the corner past the living room, my nostrils my eyes as I followed the delicious aroma of breakfast. I was slower than I normally moved, and my head was slightly swimming from waking up so late in the morning, but I pursued. I needed my fill, now more than ever._

_Finally, I turned right past the dining room and into the kitchen, immediately slumping onto a chair. I was still drunk with sleep, glancing around the kitchen without really taking in the sight as I rub the sand (or rather sandcastles) out of my eyes. _

_My eyes eventually rested on the morning light streaming through the windows as it painted the breakfast table on front of me with gold; I extended my hands across to feel the warmth on my fingertips, when a large, tanned hand encompassed mine in his instead._

_I looked up, surprised to see a man in his late 20s lovingly smiling down at me. He wore business clothes, ready for work: a white polo loosely tucked into the waistband of his dark pants, with a necktie adorn across his shoulders undone. Subconsciously my eyes darted to his short dark hair, still taken aback that he'd finally listened and got a haircut yesterday, and I glanced at the exposed olive-toned flesh of his neck, the slightly crooked nose, the faint scars that marred his face, up until my brown eyes met his – the color of midnight, or charcoal, or depth._

"Fang?_"_

"_You're up," he stated the obvious, gently pushing my hands away to place a plate of food in front of me, an odd assembly of half a tuna sandwich, a small mound of spicy noodles and cup of blueberry yogurt. I'd imagine the combination gross but I dug into it anyway. My stomach was a _beast_._

"_What're you still doing here? Shouldn't you be at work?" I questioned, alarmed that he wasn't following his usual schedule. In fact, not following _my_ schedule threw me off a little but I had to remind myself that I was on leave for the moment. I shouldn't overwork my body too much for the days to come. _

"_Iggy couldn't come over today and my meeting doesn't start till half-past ten. I thought I'd make you breakfast." He shot me a half-smile as he placed a glass of OJ on front of me and proceeded to stand over me. "Wouldn't want my wife to poison herself, now would I?"_

_I shot him a dark look. "I'm not completely inept, you know. I'm a _girl_; there's gotta be some instinct in me that'll help me make food…or at least help me work the microwave."_

_He laughed, brushed back my unruly hair and swiped his thumb across my blushing cheek, reminding me even more that I still wasn't capable of cooking at the age of 28. I was such a winner in life._

_Breakfast went by quick, and the next thing I knew I was scrapping the bottom of the plastic yogurt cup with my spoon. When I lowered the cup from view I caught Fang staring at me with amusement, eyebrows characteristically raised._

"_What?" I asked in between licks of my spoon, an eyebrow raised in turn._

_In the next second, Fang shot out of his chair and carried me – bridal style, might I add – bringing the both of us into the next room, the living room. _

"_What the hell, Fang! Put me down! I'm not some handicap!" I said, but I was laughing along with him anyway._

"_Technically, Max, you are." He smiled smugly like he was so darn _hilarious_, and I smacked on him the chest._

_He plopped us down on the comfy peach-colored couch in the corner, but not without grace, and I ended up sitting on his lap with my arms still around his neck and my legs out in front of me._

"_Fang, what're you-"_

"_I was thinking we name him Alec," he blurted out of nowhere, making me raise my eyebrows even higher I'd imagine they disappeared into my hairline._

"_What?"_

"_Our son," he stated, like it was pretty freakin' obvious that he was talking about him the entire time._

_Without really thinking, my arms wrapped around my bulging stomach defensively. I cradled it as if our child was already here, and my usually stubbornness shown through at Fang's statement._

"_But what if it's a girl," I said in my no non-sense voice, peeking at Fang through my eyelashes._

_He sighed, holding me closer to his chest as his fingers played with the wavy end of my hair. "What did you have in mind?"_

"_I like the name Alice. Y'know, after your mom." I bit my lip, cautious if I should go into that topic. "I mean, our twins are named after my half-siblings and I thought it would be fair if you-"_

_He just laughed at me again. "Max, this isn't some competition. We agreed to Gabe and Aria because we both liked those names." Then he smiled again and it felt like the sun was only rising now. "But thanks, Max." _

"_This is not just because of your mom, though. I really like the name Alice."_

"_And I really like the name Alec," he shot back._

"_Fine then, if our kid's a boy, his name is Alec. But if it's a girl, she's Alice." I bargained, trying to quell my smile to keep my face blank and business-like._

"_Okay then." He tried too, but he couldn't help it when he brought his face down to mine and kissed me on my forehead, never loosening his hold of me in his arms._

_Peeking through my eyelashes again, I observed how his bangs swooped over his forehead and over one eye so much like it did 13 years ago. His lips, too, looked as it did when we were 15, lopsided, especially when he grinned. And his eyes remained endless and indescribable where no adjective could do it justice – forever onyx and bright with intensity._

_Though we grew old, they were just some things that I knew would never change._

_Kinda like the both of us, Max and Fang._

_I closed my eyes and inhaled the comforting smell of this spring morning. I knew Fang had work but neither of us cared. I opened my mouth to ask Fang something, when-_

I muffled my scream into the pillow I was sleeping on, curling even tighter around myself to try to suppress the ache.

The gurgling sound in the back of my throat sounded inhumane, as if I was speaking in different tongues to try to contact life from another planet or something. And I figured I was really gurgling when the metallic taste of blood washed through my mouth as I swallowed, trying to fight down the urge of another scream bubbling up.

The reason I was screaming freakin' bloody murder was no, not because I just woke up from the most super fantastical dream since _ever_ (but y'know, maybe my frustration contributed to the outburst, just a _tiny_ bit), but because I felt like ever inch of me was on _fire_.

My whole being was paralyzed. I had hoped that holding myself together in a fetal position would ease some of the pain, but even just twitching my muscles sent another wave of knives on my flesh. My insides? Yeah, a rave with booze and drugs was going on in there too.

Even my face felt like it was being eaten, but I couldn't – for the life of me – lift my hands to smack the non-existent ants away because they too, were being eaten by non-existent spiders.

I guess I was only able to survive that gruesome episode because I was starting to get used to this – all the throbbing, twisting pain that would overcome the different parts of my body. I've trained for this for the past few weeks; if this had happened to me a few months ago…well, I don't even know what I would've done. Maybe I'd have been willing for someone to sedate me, or I'd have Iggy stuff Gazzy with a mountain of burritos so I could pass out from his Eu de Constipation, but now I was ready.

The only thing I knew I could do was to stay still and regulate my breathing until it would go away, even if expanding my lungs hurt like a bitch. Jaw set, fists clenched, eyes shut tight.

To distract myself, I took my mind back to the dream I had just a few minutes ago – reminiscing the house, the way Fang looked at 28 years old, how infinite his hand felt in mine, and the names of our children…

When I got around to musing about the hilarity of the names Gabe and Aria**, my mind registered that a side of my face was soaking wet. I lifted my torso to check my soggy pillow, then realized then that all the pain had ebbed away.

Wasting no time, I quickly sat up and wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. Ready to launch into my awkward happy dance that all that suffering was finally over, someone else's voice made me flip out instead and I literally flipped out of bed _with skill_, sheets still entangled in my limbs that I came crashing to the floor.

It was no Swan Lake but I definitely did _not_ yelp out a combination of "whoa", "crap", and "shit" in a garbled, high-pitched voice. Psh. If you heard anything, that wasn't me. No way.

"Max?" the voice asked again with concern, and when I wriggled out of my blanket cocoon I took in the sight of Ella, looking down at me.

"What's up, Ells?" I asked casually, trying to keep my cool. My half-sister, who is in no way an idiot, just mercifully chuckled under her breath and held a hand out to me.

"Are you okay? What was that all about?" she asked carefully, indicating the entirety of what went down.

"How much did you see?"

"All that I need to know." Ella gave me a pointed look. She too, knew what had been happening to me as of late. (i.e. vomiting, coughing, fainting, etc.)

I sighed exaggeratedly loud. "It's nothing, really. I just had a nightmare." _Who the hell was I kidding? I don't think I ever wanted to wake up!_

By her raised eyebrow I could tell she wasn't buying it. Luckily, Ella is the greatest half-sister ever –she knew where the lines were draw.

"Oh, well do you wanna talk about it?" she asked.

_HOLY SHIT, ELLA! FANG BORE MY CHILDREN. _"Nah, I'm good." I smiled.

"Okay. Well, everyone's having breakfast now and mom's leaving in a few," she said, making her way towards the door already.

While I dusted off the non-existent dirt off my butt, I was inconspicuously shaking my head at the same time, trying to gather my bearings. "Yeah, sure. I'll be down in a minute," I said distractedly, making my way towards the bathroom to change out of my pajamas.

Once in, I stopped in front of the mirror and couldn't help scratching the back of my head in frustration, complete with the immature stomp of my foot. One of the blaring signs of stress I possessed – huge dark rings underneath my eyes – stressed me out even more. And when I swept all my unkempt hair to one side of my shoulder, _hello!_ – my expiration date was still there, the numbers 09-93-01 still dark and prominent as ever.

"_Fuck!_" I whisper-shouted, just pissed about the whole cramping episode I had with Ella just _staring_ at me. Pissed that I had to wake up. I was just freakin' pissed at the entirety of this unfair world.

Let me tell you: it _sucks_ having a dream about a future you can't ever have. My fairytale ending can only exist in my sleep and yet the universe just _loves_ snapping its fingers in my face.

I kept up the grimace throughout the whole charade of making myself look presentable, even when I was brushing my teeth no matter how difficult it was.

That better be some damn good breakfast.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

As I fiddled with the multicolored bracelet I always wore now, I failed to see the honking-hugeass stroller bag blocking the entrance to the kitchen, making me simultaneously ram my knee and stub my toe at the same time. Since I had an image to live up to, I played it cool, coming to lean on the marble counter casually.

"Gosh, did you pack your whole clinic in there? How long will you be gone anyway?" I asked my mom, who was across the kitchen waiting for her coffee as always.

I almost forgot that my mom's trip to Ontario was today. It was another one of her veterinary conventions that she loved so much, and espite the major shit we were dealing with right now I couldn't _not_ let her go. She was first and foremost a veterinarian, and she's done a lot for me and the flock already.

"Two weeks," she said, tilting her face to smile at me slightly. If I hadn't been holding onto the counter for support, I would've done a double take. Oh _crap._

"_Two weeks?_" I repeated, my voice higher than I'd intended.

"Why? Is there something wrong? Is that too long?" mom asked, concern knitting her eyebrows.

"Yeah, Max," Iggy said from the opposite end of the table. I hadn't acknowledged that the entire flock plus Ella were seated all around the breakfast table, happily munching away at their toasts and bacon. "Can't stand being away from your mommy for a few days?" he taunted, pouting his lips at me like a jerk. I shot him the bird with a dirty look.

Walking backwards like a bamf, I sat down on what I'd calculated would be the nearest seat available. Instead of that though, I'd stumbled onto Fang's lap (of all the people in the world, of course!) and instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck to balance myself. _I swear_, he wasn't sitting there three seconds ago. I _promise. _

Considering I wasn't supposed to be canoodling with him, and the fact that I'd just had a very oh-snap-I-had-a-family-with-Fang kinda dream, of course I'd blush and get all hot like some baked tomato.

"_Noo…_" I said slowly, getting out of Fang's lap (reluctantly, might I add) and moving forward towards the kitchen island to get like, a sausage or something. "I just didn't realize you'd be gone that long." And since I was still red-faced and everything, I looked like a total liar.

"Oh honey, you won't even realize I was missing." My mom made her way around the island and affectionately patted me on the cheek. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her check her watch, listened as she exclaimed about how she might be late for her flight, and even asked me if I could drive her there. But I was too distracted to fully comprehend any of those things and just stood there, staring at a crack on the marble counter.

She called my name again, and even shook my shoulder gently, but I was so out of it. Eventually, Fang offered to drive her to the airport and courteously carried all her bags and belongings to the car. I wasn't able to say my proper goodbyes as she kissed me on the cheek lightly and flew out the back door, my 'mhmm' in reply still echoing in my ears when she'd said to take care.

I wanted to be the one to drive her, wanted to hug her back and say I love you in turn but it was too much for me. The force of this premonition was too big to ignore, and trying to suppress it wouldn't let it go away. My heart pounded hard as my mind raced with it.

Because bad things always happened whenever mom wasn't around.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I felt like the worst daughter _ever._

Okay, there's no denying that I am.

While everyone was out and about doing God knows what, here I was, standing in the threshold of my mother's bedroom, feeling like a traitorous douche for what I was about to do. I had already skipped out on taking her to the airport and now I'm snooping all up in her personal stuff like some grubby-handed robber, trying not to make a sound as I tiptoed across the room.

Despite knowing that everyone was probably on the ground floor, I couldn't help but keep silent while I foraged for what I was looking for. I didn't know what to expect if I'd accidentally made a sound – maybe the FBI or the CIA would burst through the doors or something. Can't have that. It was unusual for any of us, even for me and Ella, to be in my mom's room. Like it was some unspoken rule.

Ella used to tell me stories of when she'd crawl onto our mother's bed in their old house, and they'd just watch whatever was on TV together – old cartoon, chick flicks, and nature documentaries. I don't really know what changed; I guess it's because we all have our own television sets in our room, and in seven other public rooms in this house. Mom didn't have time to just lie in bed on weekend mornings anymore. It's sad to think about it, really.

More than anything, I was disgusted with myself. I had already searched my mom's study before, looking for any School files that might help me somehow, but all I found were employee manuals, old contacts and such. I couldn't believe I was looking through her stuff a second time, but I couldn't help but feel like I hadn't searched thoroughly yet. ***

It was like I wanted to assure myself that my mom had quit working for the School immediately after my birth, and at the same time I needed to find something, _anything_ that might help me get rid of my expiration date.

Moving towards the far corner of the room with panther-like grace I didn't know I had, I assessed what I've already gone through. Being the paranoid freak that I have been all my life, I swear I checked almost everywhere, even in the most unusual places. It was standard procedure in my flock when we were on the run – to search for any possible hazards and threats and leave everything the way you found them.

…but where the hell would my mom keep her old work files, stuff that were too important to throw away but were too taboo in this household to just leave lying around?

I stood in the corner of my mom's room, balancing on the balls of my feet on a small patch of black marble as if the whole room were filled with lava, like the game I used to play with the flock back in the old days. I pondered where someone as paranoid as me would place it, and when I put myself in my mom's shoes, it didn't take me long to figure the hiding spot.

Lithely, I skipped to her bathroom, burst through the door and flicked on the light switch in one go, and came to a stop in front of her closet.

There were three of them actually, but with my years of practice and expertise at robbery and theft, it took me half the time it took to realize where she'd placed the skeletons – quite literally in her closet.

I went through all her things, even encountering useless junk that my mom probably deemed of sentimental worth, until I came across this thick, nondescript, pale yellow folder smashed into the very back of the closet. I hadn't even opened the first page when I already knew this was it.

Before I could think to chicken out I flipped the cover quickly – and there it was.

Right smack in the middle of the sheet was the School's logo, the words 'Strohelm Inc.' printed neatly underneath. I hadn't known the School's real name until this moment, but I knew that big fancy-scripted S on the cover anywhere. It was all over the school's equipment, their uniforms, their labs and their cages…

_Bingo._

Holding the folder to my chest, I didn't know whether to feel accomplished or sick to my stomach.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Max didn't know whether to feel pleased or bitter either when Angel called them all for a flock meeting in the entertainment room that afternoon, but she went along with it anyway; whatever it was sounded important and Max hated being out of the loop of anything.

When she strode into the room, the longing for authority hit her. It was strange to want the position of leadership this much, but this was what she was made for. The craving flowed through her veins and the need to make plans was threatening to burst through.

She was born to lead.

She felt all eyes on her as she entered, but Max held her head high as she took the seat next to Gazzy and pretended not to give a care in the world. Once upon a time, she used to stand at the front of the room and pace back and forth whenever she gave her speeches, always infused with conviction whether she was brainstorming ideas or simply lifting their spirits after a failed mission. But it was not her place anymore.

Out of the corner of Max's eye, she could see Nudge curiously looked over in her direction, outright staring at Max as she drummed her fingers on the arm of the couch distractedly. Then Max watched as Nudge turned her head to stare at Fang on the other side of the room, where he leaned against the wall and looked at some pictures on a nearby shelf to pass the time. It was easy to tell what Nudge was thinking: _Why weren't Max and Fang sitting together? _

It seems neither Iggy nor Angel have told the others about their break-up yet.

Then Angel came into the room with the clap of her hands, catching everyone attention. Max noticed that she was not the insecure girl who cried to her about her problems yesterday. No, she walked with confidence in every step, an exasperating superiority complex along with it. She was still the shortest among the flock, coming to Max's waist if they stood side by side, but as she came to a stop on front of the TV and stood tall with pride, she didn't look so small after all.

"So, I know we haven't been doing anything lately, especially because of the incident in Max's school…" Angel jumped straight into her talk. At that, Max's head shot up from her gaze on the sofa's pattern, taken aback that she made Max's healing time an excuse for why she hadn't come up with any ideas. How insulting.

"But then I got to thinking…" Angel dragged out a dramatic pause, trying to pump up the rest of the flock with curiosity. Max leaned her cheek against her palm, an eyebrow raised. "And I propose that we start practicing our fighting skills. Y'know, spar with each other in the gym, get back into shape like we were when we were on the run."

In that second, Fang's head whipped around to look at Max and she met his gaze. Angel noticed this, and when they both turned to look at her, embarrassment washed through the young girl as she figured what they already knew. That Max and Fang had talked about this idea even before Max helped out Angel; they already knew the plan that Angel was claiming as her own.

"I mean, it's perfect because we get to stay here in Greymoore, and the boys and Max can practice the powers they've recently developed. We can stay here, and we can prepare ourselves for the next time the Bruisers attack us," she continued on, but with less confidence in her tone.

Just as Iggy raised his hand like a grade-schooler to ask questions, the telephone in the corner of the room by the fire place began to ring. Being the closest, Max stood up and answered the phone like she was taught to, leaning casually against the wall.

Fang watched Max intently as her eyebrows began to knit together with every respond on the cordless phone. Despite the distance and the conversation going on with the rest of the flock, he could perfectly hear what she was saying.

"Hello?...Uhh, yeah it is…Yeah, and you?" A long pause. "Yeah, I am…Why?...Uhh, okay…Mhmm…sure…yeah…okay, bye."

However, her ambiguity made his enhanced hearing seem useless. He couldn't figure out the emotion in her voice either so he ended up asking thoughtlessly, "What was that all about?"

The loudness of Fang's voice was unusual, and so naturally everyone stopped what they were doing to look at him and Max. The latter shook her head, still confused by what just happened. She stood staring bemusedly at the phone in her hand, before dropping it back and shaking it off like it was nothing.

"It was Mitzi," she told them, looking up to their eyes. "She said she needs to meet up with me."

* * *

**I am so sorry for the length of this chapter. **I know long ones are pretty overwhelming and tiring to read but I don't want this story to have _too_ many chapters and I still have a lot in store for you guys. Besides, it's been 3 freakin' months since I've updated. I had to make up for it somehow. ;) I'll try not to over-write too much next time and I hope this was okay.

*The song Max played on the piano is called **Fiction by Avenged Sevenfold**. It's basically about death (_oh the irony!_) You guys should check it out.

I hope you **understand the beginning of the chapter**. See, Angel's _not _evil, really; she just believes that what she's doing is the right thing, and she's not letting any obstacles get in her way. One of them being Max (kinda like Itex or the School). She's only 7-years old, so try to see it from her point of view too.

**Did you get the **Gabe and Aria** bit? No? Well see, Gabe and Aria is short for – _Gabriel and Arianna_. The opposite gender versions of Gabriel and Arianna could be – _Gabriella and Adrian_. And the nicknames for Gabriella and Adrian can be – _Ella and Ari_. See what I did there? (so yes, in my story Ella's full name is Gabriella and Ari's was Adrian, if you didn't catch that)

***I mentioned that she had gone through her mom's stuff in passing, in chapter 20: _'…__In a way, I have already accepted my future, or rather,__no__future of living any longer than 16. Recently, __I foraged through mom's old stuff, back when she still worked at the School, and found nothing on expiration dates.__ Either she already left when they created them or they kept that information away from her…' _You guys probably don't remember it but I didn't think it was important enough to write about – Max going through the study and ending up finding nothing. So there.

**HAI GUYS. I HOPE YOU SEE THIS BOLDED, ALL CAPS AND UNDERLINED TEXT BECAUSE IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT!**

Okay, 1.) A reviewer asked about **Max's expiration date** and I thought I'd like to clear some stuff about it, so answers are on my profile under the heading **QUESTION OBER HUR**. I'm sure most of you are confused (because I had to go back and check the books myself) if 09-93-01 (Max's expiration date from chapter 5) is an actual date, or if I actually said when she would die. I hope you take the time to check it out so you all won't be confused; and I plan on taking it out a fortnight from today for the sake of the story. :) If you have any more questions: **lay 'em on me, bebeh!**

2.) **I HOPE YOU GUYS ARE READING THIS. **Yeah okay, I know this is shameless advertising and all but I hope ya'll go check out my **new collab story with maximumrain3 called 'Unbeknownst'** :D Apparently it's had 300 hits in just its _first_ week so I'm not even kidding you that it's an awesome read. It's got a mix of both our writing styles, and I've got a really good feeling about this story. :)

You can search for it. It's on my profile. It's on my favorites. It's on maximumrain3's favorites – so I'm sure you won't have difficulty finding it. ;)

I hope you lovely readers support me on my new side project, and just to bribe you guys (shamelessly, again): I swear **I'll update this story next week** (and remember I'd said that chapter 43 has drah-mah? It's shocking, let me tell you) if I get at least **10 of you** (who don't already read and review 'Unbeknownst') to review _and_ subscribe to 'Unbeknownst'. You won't regret it!

**Review, review, review!** Pretty please?

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	43. Paintball Fight

Nov. 26, 2011. Saturday. (4:01pm)

'Sup guys :)

**First order of business**: Maraming salamat po kina **ShortLittlePixie**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **maximumpotter101**, **book phan44**, **mysterywriter94**, **Terrace Lily**, **icekat58**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **DancingintheRayne**, **AnikaandAj**, **Birdwatched** and **Michaela** for reviewing the last chapter. You've all waited patiently and stuck out with me for so long; I really can't thank you enough. :')

**Second**: I'd like to dedicate this chapter to **maximumpotter101** and **icekat58 **for reviewing and subscribing to **'Unbeknownst'**, respectively. Yeah, just the two of them. I'd still very much appreciate it if you'd all check out my collab story with maximumrain3 called, duh, 'Unbeknownst'. It's very easy to find so there's no other reason not to give it a try. Head on right there!...After reading this chapter!

**Lastly**: I apologize in advanced for the excessive cursing, in case that's not how you roll.

**Be sure to check my AN in the bottom** because it's really important! But for now, here's chapter 43.

* * *

The meeting place I agreed to with Mitzi was in the next city over called Hampton, which was basically just a more crowded, commercial version of Greymoore. Tall buildings were few and far, but the smoky air from all the cars was enough to make me almost cough out a lung.

Despite all those conditions though, I still found it heavenly to be flying. It's literally been a month since the last time I'd fully stretched my wings and felt the excitement of taking off; and even if I'd just completely recovered from all my injuries with my muscles and joints still sore, it was really quite orgasmic to be doing the thing I was created for: flapping my seven-foot long wings in the bright sky – something so unusual and contradictory in the Circle of Being.

After flying around the area once, I was able to locate the quaint diner joint clumped in between a couple of small business buildings. I could see the bold red letters of 'Dinah's Diner' even from all the way up here, just a few blocks away from the obnoxious signage titled 'Cindy's Cinema'.

I wouldn't be surprised if their supermarket was called 'Marty's Mart!' or something just as lame.

I went through the usual routine – landed amongst the branches of a tree in the nearest park, made sure no one was watching when I dropped down from there, walked to the diner as casually as I could all the while checking my surroundings for anything suspicious, and remembered to keep my wings tucked firmly along my spine inside my windbreaker.

When I finally reached the 60's-themed eatery, I stopped at the entrance to mentally prepare myself.

I didn't really know what to think about this. Mitzi made this meeting sound urgent, but if it was so important then why did it take this long? Why was she only stopping to think about me now, 2 weeks after the bomb incident, and what exactly did she need to tell me that couldn't be told over the phone?

The sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach grew bigger with each step I took inside the diner. It felt wrong being here, most especially meeting up with Mitzi when I should've stopped concerning myself with things from my 'normal life'.

I hadn't even thought of my alibis yet when a loud squeal came from the back of the room, and in the next second I found myself in the arms of a petite brunette, the top of her head bumping harshly against my nose.

"CAM! Oh my God, I _can't believe it's really you!_" her familiar voice said over my shoulder.

And I know I shouldn't have felt this way, but I found myself smiling and hugging her back.

"_Mitzi,_" I simply said, and it felt natural.

Besides the fact that her phone call was too ominous for my liking, I was afraid that she would still feel awkward and disgusted around me because of the whole 'incest' mishap. She'd only apologized to me the day my car blew up, and here we were now, hugging.

My heart constricted, thinking about the time when everything was so easy; when I was still close to Mitzi, when I still attended normal school, and when the worst thing in my life was a graded English essay due in a few minutes.

Mitzi eventually drew back, holding my shoulders at arms length to look at me. I noticed that she'd had a haircut from the last time I saw her, her beautiful chocolate-colored locks now coming to a little past her shoulders instead of it's usual waist-level length, but everything else about her stayed the same.

She was still fashionable as ever in her expensive-looking blouse matched with brown leather oxfords. Her face was still eternally flawless, smile still bright and slightly lopsided from her teeth. And I knew that if I stared too long, I'd probably drown in her majestic cerulean blue eyes.

"Jesus Christ, it really is you…" she breathed, and she just kept staring at me like wings just sprouted from my back or something. _Psh._

"Umm…I think you have me confused with someone else. Last time I checked, I wasn't God." I used my signature WTF tone and raised an eyebrow. Instead of Mitzi rolling her eyes at my sarcasm like she usually did, she just laughed and ushered me to where she was sitting before I came.

It was like she'd hung out with Nudge behind my back or something, because she began talking even before I'd sat my butt down on the booth's seat. So classically Mitzi.

"Soo…how have you been? The past few days must've been really tough for you," she said softly, and the kindness and concern in her voice made me forget that we weren't really in good terms. It was just like before.

"Yeah…well, there's the definite trauma from the incident so my family's thinking of staying out of school for a while. Y'know, gather our bearings," I said, and I mentally patted myself on the back for my exceptional acting and excuse; I even pretended to stutter and look uncomfortable.

I deserve an Academy Award.

At the same time, I just couldn't bring myself to tell Mitzi that I wasn't ever coming back to Greymoore High. I wouldn't want her to get caught up in our mess if she ever found out how much trouble my family is in.

"Oh. Well, we really miss you guys at school. We were all _so_ worried when we found out it was your car. That must've been _horrible._ I mean, Bris was so close to having a heart attack and-"

"I get it, Mits," I laughed, feeling slightly sad at the mention of my other 'normal' friends. I had forgotten about Bris, and Izzy, and Zach. Just hearing their names swept me with nostalgia, despite it only being a few days ago since I'd seen them. "I'm really sorry we made you worry, or that we didn't call to make sure you guys were okay. How is everyone now?" I asked, sincerely wondering about their well-beings myself.

"Well they just resumed classes again last week so everyone's still paranoid and stuff," Mitzi smirked. "Bris is Bris, and well, Zach's been hanging out with this chick named Celina recently. I think he's mentioned him to us before. Some family friend, I think." I couldn't remember Zach ever mentioning this girl, but by the tone of Mitzi's voice, I could tell she didn't really favor this 'Celina'.

"But enough about _her_," she continued, "How are you doing? And how are your brothers?"

She tried, she really did, but her obvious flinch at the word 'brother' could've been seen a mile away. I could tell she still wasn't used to the idea of me and Fang dating; I don't think she'll ever get used to it.

"We're doing nothing, actually. It's really boring at home, but my parents don't want us going out in public in case of another incident." Lie topped on top of another lie.

But from my excuse, I suddenly remembered… "Hey speaking of which, why did you need to meet up with me? You sounded…_weird_ on the phone. Is there something wrong?" I questioned carefully, afraid that this topic might be something sensitive or emotional. I didn't know what it was, but I swear, if Mitzi starts to cry right now about something or other, I'd probably ask the waitress here to be the one to dry her tears and pat her back with assurances. I really wasn't cut out for comfort.

Don't even get me started on teen advice.

"Oh…about that…" Mitzi suddenly got all flustered, her cheeks and the tips of her ears turning red. I watched with amusement as she struggled on how to begin her sentence, getting all tongue-tied. "'Cause I've been meaning to tell you this weeks ago, but then we weren't really talking, and then classes were suspended, and it only really dawned on me just yesterday that I forgot to tell you. I'm _really_ sorry, Cam. It just happened, and I didn't think _that-_"

I cut off her ramble quickly, processing her words and hating what she'd just said. She was apologizing…but for what? And why did my heart start to clench with trepidation?

"I don't even know what you're talking about, Mits. Just calm down. What is it?" I questioned, keeping my voice casual.

"I sort of…told somebody about your secret."

"Who? Bris?" I asked, but from the guilty look on her face I could already tell it was far worse.

"…_no. _I told some stranger at a bar the night I saw you guys," Mitzi confessed with her eyes closed, as if not seeing me would give her the courage to just say it in one breath.

Immediately and quit loudly, alarms started going off inside my head. Simultaneously, I even felt my face go all warm and my heart stuttered in my chest.

See, a stranger knowing some secret may not be a big deal to anybody else, but it meant a thousand _dangerous_ possibilities to me. I might have to sleep with one eye open tonight.

I guess my feelings shone through on my face, because at my expression she started explaining everything with gusto.

"Wait, Cam! You see, I _so_ was weirded out and shit and I just _had _to let it out, you know? And that night, Dakota dragged me to this club uptown. And _apparently_ I passed for 18 because they let me in without an ID, and my sister left me at the bar, and I got a bit tipsy, and everything just happened!" she exclaimed, making rapid arm gestures to emphasis her words.

"What do you mean…?" My tone was wary.

She bit her lip. "_Well_…I kinda told this guy that I was troubled because my best friend was dating her brother, but I didn't know what to think! And he was _really_ friendly, but I don't know. I only realized how stupid I was when I finally got home. I mean, what if he's a family friend, or a relative? Does anyone outside your family know about your…_'relationship'?_ Because I don't want to cause any problems for you; I don't mean to. I'm really sorry, Cam."

I love Mitzi, I really do, but sometimes she could be such a dolt. Luckily for her, I had enough willpower left in me not to strangle her silly. I kept a patient face, trying to act like it _totally_ wasn't a big deal, even though she could possibly be putting my whole family in danger. Y'know, like it was all good.

"Did you mention our names?" I asked with what I was hoping was the right amount of worry in my tone. At this, Mitzi bit her lip again and I suppressed the urge to scream, already knowing her answer.

"I might've. I don't know. I don't remember."

By this time, my panic-o-meter was broken to smithereens at the rate her answers were driving me insane, but I tried not to let it show.

"Were you able to get a name at least?"

"Umm… Na-Nathaniel?" She tested the name on her lips, looking skywards. After a few monumental seconds, she snapped her fingers, eyes bright, and I find that I'm able to spare one innocent soul in the world from being killed by my irritation. Lucky kid.,, "_There!_ He introduced himself as Nathaniel Gratwick, but his nickname's Nate, if I remember correctly."

"So, did he mention if he was working, or if he's still in school?" I asked some more, hoping the questions didn't seem too suspicious.

"Well, we didn't really talk about that kind of stuff; I was mostly ranting to him, but I remember how he looks like." She smiled sheepishly. I gave her a pointed look, urging her to go on.

"Oh! Okay, so he had the most _gorgeous_ green eyes. _As in._ And like, gelled hair. But not like, super gross or anything like that; it was totally _sexy._ He looked almost as tall as Nick. And the kicker is, I think he's fresh out of college, and I think he thought I was his age or something because he bought me a drink and kept sticking to me the entire night! Just, oh my goodness, he was so _hot._" She went on about his looks, and I didn't know whether to be amazed and annoyed by how easily she could get sidetracked. I clicked my tongue.

"So, umm…what else did you talk about?"

And again, she bit her bottom lip, afraid that her answer would upset me again; apparently my bad habit was really contagious.

"Sorry, Cam, but I really can't remember everything. I remembering ranting, and dancing, and going home but nothing much else." She gave me a sad smile, her beautiful blue eyes looking so puppy-like…almost Bambi-like…

_Aw shit._

I couldn't stay mad at Mitzi. Not when she was looking at me with so much concern, and most especially since she really didn't know any better. It wasn't her fault.

"Oh, it's okay. I don't know the guy so it's cool."

I tried to smile at her, but I think it ended up more like a grimace. Nothing could quell the uneasy feeling in my heart, because however inconsequential Mitzi's actions were, they always ended up biting me back in the ass. I'd never heard of a Nathaniel Gratwick, but that was the problem – he could be anybody.

Lucky for Mitzi, she could now rest easy. I longed to sigh in relief the way she did when I reassured her, but at least she didn't have to worry about anything else anymore.

"Thanks Cam. I feel so much better now that I told you."

But I didn't.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

After that episode, all problems were forgotten and we continued to talk into the afternoon. I was still anxious and on edge about this revelation, but I promised myself that I would worry about this another time as we instead focused more on what's been happening in the group – even gossiping about Izzy and her rocky relationship with Mason.

Despondently, I realized that everything went back to normal without us. Mitzi still possessed the spirit she always had whenever she would spread rumors, Bris still practiced his pick-up lines without me, Zach was still the captain of the lacrosse team, and Izzy was now starting to come back to their group slowly.

Though they missed us, they would eventually get over it and find new friends. It would be as though we never even came to Greymoore. They didn't need us and the drama that we came along with.

As long as they were safe and happy, then I'm sure everything was going to be okay.

By the time Mitzi finished her story about Izzy scolding Mason in the mall, who didn't happen to be Mason after all (talk about _awkward_), I noticed then that the sun had completely set and that I couldn't see much but darkness outside the windows.

"Hey Mits, I'm sorry for ditching, but I think my parents might start to notice I've been missing for four hours now. I think I should go home; you too," I said, starting to get up. Mitzi nodded and slurped the remains of her milkshake before following me to the exit, and we walked together in the barely-lit space of the parking lot in small conversation.

"We should do this again sometime," she proposed, looking up at me with a tiny smile. "When do you plan on going back to school anyway?"

"It's up to my parents, but I'll call you so we can hang out again." I smiled in response and elbowed her on the arm. The cherry on top of my pie of lies.

Since I came here via 'wind beneath my wings', I offered to walk Mitzi to her car, which was parked about two blocks away. There was more trivial chatter thrown in there, as we shoved each other playfully on the sidewalk and fooled around.

During the time I happened to glance into the distance as we walked, my eyes made out the neon letters of 'Super Mark's Supermarket', complete with the blinking shopping cart sign and a red cape tied around it's handle bars. My eyebrows shot to my hairline.

I couldn't believe I stood corrected. This was far worse that 'Marty's Mart!'

Laughing lightly, I was about tap Mitzi to tell her about it, but my fingers grasped air as I reached out in her general direction. I turned in confusion…

And that's about when everything went to _shit._

Mitzi's scream echoed mine as we were both hauled off the street and into an alley – the stereotypical alley dirtied with graffiti and sludge that lined the brick walls where any poor schmuck becomes a victim.

And right now that was me and Mitzi.

My back slammed against the wall, and I heard cracks come from my head and my wings at the impact. At this point I still haven't realized what was happening, so I was pretty darn proud of myself that I was able to execute a high kick right before I blocked an oncoming blow with my arms. I felt the adrenaline pump me up, filling me with a rush of determination and power – but that only lasted for a second before one of the thugs grabbed me by my arm and I shot back into action.

However, I wasn't too focused on beating these guys to a bloody pulp for ruining my evening. My main priority as I threw punches and ducked from kicks was to find Mitzi and _get her the heck out of her_. Knowing her, she wasn't even capable of kneeing a rapist in the groin and running away. Mitzi was fierce, but she was all talk. She couldn't hurt an ant; might break a nail or something.

My ears were my eyes as I followed the sounds of her relentless shrieking, the continuous cussing and yelling coming from much farther down the alley as I clawed my way past the other robbers. Mentally, I was praying that either Mitzi shut up and give them her valuables like a martyr, or that she suddenly internalized a Bruce Lee complex and started whooping ass. Too much noise might attract attention, and these guys might just very well kill her.

There were eight of them. From the faint light coming from the streetlight near the entrance of the alley and the luminous full moon tonight, I noticed how tall and muscular they all were; it was insane. They never said anything – no request for our wallets, or even any maniacal laughter. The thugs just kept fighting us quietly as if they were drunk and out of their minds, only they couldn't have been intoxicated from their well-placed punches and hits.

As cocky as it sounds, I knew I could take all eight of them out, even with my eyes blind-folded and my hands tied behind my back. I mean, I _have_ been trained to fight since I was a mere four years old.

But for some reason, all my defenses seemed weak and ineffective against them. Punches were slow and my kicks didn't even make them fall on their asses. It was just perfect timing that I had one of my little 'moments' right now, tiring out so quickly in the middle of a goddamn fight. I continually chanted '_Not now._ _Energy, don't fail me now._' in my head, but I could physically feel the fight draining out of me without my say so. My body wasn't fighting to its full potential and I felt so useless.

Even if the fight was eight to (technically; sorry Mitzi) one, I just accepted it and took every jab as more reason to beat these guys and find Mitzi. I fell forward at least five times, was thrown against the wall thrice, and got my hair pulled in every sort of direction too many times to count, but the real kicker was when one of the dudes decided to grab my back.

Now this is where the whole shitty episode turned into a fucking _nightmare_.

See, when an ordinary robber, or even any fighter, decides to try and beat up someone, they don't reach for a spine they can't grasp, and surely the length of any man's palm wasn't long enough to encompass my entire waist, however thin I was. It just _isn't_ done.

But this – this guy roughly clawed the sides of my waist, fisting the tips of my wings in his hands and crushing the tiny bones to ashes in his palm.

He _held_ my wings in his hands, and he _knew_ they were there.

I felt sick to my stomach.

So sick that I felt bile rise up in my throat and everything in me just shuddered at this realization. My eyes widened and my heart raced for miles, pounding in my ears and making it hard for me to hear, or think, or even _breathe._

But there was no time to wonder how this all happened since I was pulled back into reality and pushed against the wall. I tried not to dwell on this, tried to pull myself together and fight on, but discovering this just threw me off and maybe even dwindled my bravery.

It took me longer than it should've to fight back, but I quickly thought to use the wall to my advantage, kicking off with my feet to launch myself on the Bruiser and wrap my legs around his neck. I then twisted backwards in a flip, bringing his neck and his entire body with my momentum and making him crash on the ground behind me.

For a moment, I took pride in the fact that I was able to knock this fridge-sized motherfucker out cold, but my success was short-lived as I heard Mitzi scream, a scream so terrifyingly loud and sharp that it set off alarms in my head and got me running deeper in the alley to find her.

What scared me was that it wasn't like her earlier shrieks where they were coherent words or curses, mainly cries for someone to come help or yells for them to let her go. No, that last scream made my blood freeze over; it would resound in my head and haunt me in my dreams.

Two Bruisers suddenly jumped on me in my haste, blocking me in my path, but I took them both head-on and jumped over the first one to come Superman punch the second.

I have to say I fared well fighting them both simultaneously, even occasionally tricking one Bruiser into punching the other in the darkness. Clearly they didn't play fair when one of them had harshly back-handed my two ta-tas, but sadly for them, I didn't either when I reciprocated by smashing a Brusier's balls in.

He wasn't likely to get someone knocked up anytime soon.

Suddenly, one of them attacked me just as I spun to block and defend. I was just righting myself from stumbling backwards, when one of them – most likely the one I castrated – came up from behind me and punched me right in the temple with a meaty, fisted hand.

If my life were a comic book, there would've been birds and stars circling above my head, complete with the bold and all caps 'WHAM!' caption in the corner panel.

The thought of passing out then sounded heavenly. I _wanted_ to pass out, but I blinked back the converging blindness with everything I had and told every nerve ending in my body to stay awake.

I couldn't be selfish – Mitzi was _my_ responsibility and I couldn't have her get hurt because of me. Never take the easy way out. Besides, I was _not_ going to be kidnapped by the School, or Itex, or anyone ever again.

Not this time. I won't allow it.

Twisting mid-fall, I turned on my side and expected to land on my shoulder. Surely it would get broken from the impact on the asphalt, but I knew it was better than getting a concussion or damaging my wings further. I even clenched my jaw and everything, totally prepared for this, but I instead landed on something rubbery yet rigid – something akin to the material of tires.

My skin scraped off on the ground, but at least my head was cushioned. The right side of my body took most of the fall so all the nasty sewage water drenched me, seeping into my clothes and soaking me to the bone.

It was kind of weird though, because the water was unusually warm on my flesh. I very much knew the freezing coldness of rain water during the hard times of living out on the streets. It didn't add up.

I felt like vomiting all over again too, when some of the sewage water entered my mouth and flowed down my throat, the bitter taste of _metal-_

Wait.

Steeling my arms to support my weight, I looked down at the ground with blinking eyes, my sight adjusting as my head swayed in time with my vision. It took a while for me to make out the pink and grey shirt and the distinct brown hair shroud in this light, but when I did – I finally up-chucked the French toast I'd eaten a few minutes ago.

Her limbs lay grotesquely twisted in different angles, and I couldn't seem to figure out the color of her clothes from so much blood; it was _everywhere. _Blue eyes were left wide open, her last few horrifying memories seen from these very eyes until she was rendered blind. And maybe it was all just in my head, but I _swear_ her hand brushed mine for one last time, the last physical contact she would even feel before she exhaled her last and turned into nothing.

I chocked on a dry sob.

With all my might, I tugged on her arm to help her get up but she just wouldn't move, as if she was stuck to the ground. I could even remember screaming and commanding her to get off her ass, calling her name over and over, but all she did was ignore me. She wasn't getting up and she never will.

Though this only lasted a few seconds, I'd wasted what felt like forever crouching by her side, unaware of anything else in the world. Time was frozen and ticking like hours, but looking up made me realize that things were only unmoving for me as the Bruisers began closing in on the both of us.

Now that made me _livid._

I didn't want them touching her. I didn't want them near her. In fact, I didn't even want them _looking_ at her because it just made me so angry and disgusted.

All these emotions that came over me were clogging up my veins, taking over every inch of me. I wanted to scream, and I wanted to go crazy with rage. Feeling so much of everything was almost suffocating as I felt my throat close up, but as I willed my powers to work to get them to back off…nothing happened.

The sadness and the anger course through me in waves, the taste of its potency bitter on my tongue, but as I tried to manifest my force fields against the Bruisers now, in this time of need, absolutely _nothing happened._

Clenching my jaw; exhaling sharply; and fisting my hands tightly, the nails sinking into my palms wasn't triggering anything. I could go on trying to force it out of me, just pushing and trying, but it just. Wasn't. Working.

I was completely _useless._

Quickly resorting to Plan B, I surprise attacked the nearest Bruiser in my line of sight with a snarl, but by then I already knew I was losing because there was nothing else to fight for. My snarl was pathetic, and so was the rest of me.

I exerted all my effort as I clawed and kneed and punched, but there was simply not a lot left to begin with, and my body was turning weaker at a much faster rate then before. Knowing what just happened, it was hard to concentrate and continue to defend myself. How could I go on fighting when all I wanted was to go to Mitzi? My head and my heart were telling me different things, and I just couldn't _take it._

And so, I ran.

I broke off from the group of Bruisers with one final spinning kick to the one who'd grabbed onto my windbreaker, stumbling with hurried drunken footsteps out of the dirty alley and into the dimly-lit streets.

I didn't stop running for anything – not to catch my breath as every quick intake seared my lungs, not to rest even for a second despite how much my body wanted to collapse with exhaustion, and not even for Mitzi. My only prerogative now was to get the _hell out of here, _and fast.

My eyes weren't seeing the street signs, and the roads, and the buildings all around me. Everything just melded into one huge blur and I just kept moving forward. I wanted to keep running, maybe even believing I could run away from this.

Seconds, minutes, maybe hours passed, till eventually my mind was able to faintly notice my surroundings, noting the relatively barren road ahead. It was a street lined with old apartment buildings, lampposts dotting the spans at every other interval.

Everything seemed so surreal in that moment. Dogs were barking and babies were crying; an average night in a normal person's life. And yet I couldn't fathom how they could go on with their lives when there was just _nothing_ right anymore. It was unfair how they continue to be so blissfully ignorant as they all slept well and dreamt for the day to come. I was overflowing with outrage that they weren't seeing me, the cold truth of the world right under their noses.

_Idiots._

To hell with secrecy, I pumped my legs hard on the pavement as I tore off my windbreaker, whipping out my wings in the process. It only took me two down strokes till I was airborne, knowing that I couldn't take anymore of this city. I was utterly sick of it.

Flying fast and hard, I made my way back home as quickly as I could. Every bone in my body ached and every muscle burned with fire, but I knew that if I stopped now then nothing would keep me going. The adrenaline was slowly ebbing away and once I was left with nothing, there would be nothing to bring me back. That was the only fuel left in me to continue.

Zooming past the clouds at a steady pace of about 250mph, I forced myself not to think. I could only concentrate on angling the tiny bones in my wings that propelled me faster in the night sky, gliding on the current. Just get home – that was all I had to do now.

The wind didn't quite stream through my hair like it usually did, the tangles and knots smacking me in the face. All I was seeing was red, literally from the blood that encrimsoned my hair and clothes, and that just made me bubble more with emotions as I tried my hardest to quell it. No tears leaked from my eyes since I absolutely refused to cry.

Crying wasn't the answer; it just makes you look vulnerable and weak and it doesn't solve anything anyway. It won't bring Mitzi back.

Soon enough, I spotted the ginormous house and lot that was ours and landed clumsily by the back door, refraining from slamming into anything as I ran to a stop. Without a sound, I took of my dirty shoes and hid them in a closet in the laundry room, along with my windbreaker that I'd deal with in the morning. I would deal with everything tomorrow.

Life felt like it was on mute as I strode through the entire ground floor of the house and made my way to the glass staircase, wrapping my arms around myself from the cold and staring at my feet.

By this time, I had forced myself to empty my heart of emotions. I would ponder about this, and maybe wallow in the torrent of emotions I knew I would suffer in tomorrow, but right now I felt nothing. Nothing at all.

The cold seeped into my bones, and getting my whole body soaked didn't help either as my clothes stuck to me like a second skin. The distinct metallic odor followed me everywhere, telling me that I was covered in blood. But I shut down the part of my brain that told me to feel something about this, anything that could get a reaction out of me.

I was so _tired_, so completely drained of energy that all I wanted to do was sleep and dream of yesterday when everything was still fine. I just wanted this day to be _over._

When my bare feet made contact with ice, I knew I'd made it to the second landing, the floor made of cold hard marble. I dragged my feet one on front of the other, bruised arms limp at my sides. My vision blurred and focused in front of me, forming misshapen figures I couldn't figure out, and for a moment I thought I'd gone deaf since I registered I couldn't hear a thing. Not my breathing or anything that should've made a sound.

That is, until I heard a scream.

It was jarringly loud in the silence of the halls, making me flinch and instinctively fold into myself protectively. It reminded me of what went down just a few minutes ago, the thought popping into my head for a moment before I quickly pushed it down.

My head whipped in the direction of the familiar voice, searching, and when my eyes made out what I was looking at I could swear all the blood drained from my face.

Because e_veryone was there. _

The whole flock was lounging in the family room, either seated or lying on the ground as they watched a movie. It was so strange, seeing them all together hanging out like this as we did before.

For a moment I almost smiled at the scene – with Angel curled up next to Fang on the couch, Nudge and Ella slumped in the La-Z-Boy next to it, and Iggy and Gazzy splayed across the floor, eyes intent on the television screen. They were all together, something I hadn't seen in a long time that didn't result from an accident or an emergency. They were all together because they wanted to be.

Then, the proverbial point of view in any movie shifted back to me, and I was seeing myself standing under the arch of the family room entrance, looking so lifeless and forlorn beyond words I could describe.

It was Ella who screamed, getting up from her huddled position next to Nudge on their seat and standing erect, eyes wide and frightened. She had the best view of the hallway where I was passing, the angle from her seat _just_ right, and she saw me. Saw me in this state of…emptiness and sadness that no one was supposed to see.

Tonight was _definitely_ my night.

Of course, the flock reacted instinctively in the next millisecond. They all turned their heads and stood up, ready for any threat or surprise coming their way. Their positions were ones of fighting, knees bent and arms at the ready, but I don't think their mere fighting stances would help any. There was nothing that would prepare them for something like this.

I tried to imagine what they saw: the Max they used to look up to standing in the hall, trying her best not to look too pitiful or feeble as she stared right back. The tips of her jeans were water-logged from the dirty puddles, the toes that peeped under the edges curling reflexively in panic. Her orange t-shirt was covered with frays and scratches, much like her pants, and her dark blond hair was greasy and matted. She was scratched, wounded, cut and bruised. Everything about her screamed of filth and weakness.

Not to mention the dark maroon that covered her didn't help her case either.

The whole right side of her face and torso was caked with blood, looking as if she was dipped sideways in a vat of scarlet paint. It even reached the corner of her mouth and eye, the red seemingly blossomed from her right ear and spreading towards the center of her face like a disease. It contrasted with the color of her blond hair and pale skin, the red so bright and bold that it was hard to look away.

Embarrassment and mortification spread to my core that they were seeing me like this, looking so helpless and frail in this light. I was trying my hardest to prove Angel wrong, that I could be strong again and take on any challenges that came my way, but my display now said otherwise. I look like a wimp. I _felt_ like one too.

All the more because they were looking at me, _really_ looking, and I felt like they knew what I just did. That I was at fault for what happened to Mitzi, and that I wasn't quick or strong enough to save her.

"What happened, Max?" Gazzy was the first to speak in his tiny voice, eyes wide. He sounded so innocent and scared that it broke my heart, but at least he didn't know what'd happened.

With a smile that I'm sure looked more like a grimace, and a shrug that jarred my hurt shoulder, I answered back as casually as I could, "'s nothing. Just had a paintball fight with a bunch of Bruisers, 's all."

Turning away from them nonchalantly, I started to drag my dirty feet again on the cold marble, trying so very hard to ignore the stinging in my eyes and the fact that it was getting harder to breathe with each step forward. I had to clench my jaw tightly to keep from screaming from all the open wounds, and I tried my best to control my hand that was itching to cradle my throbbing shoulder. Surly if I didn't show just how much pain I was feeling then maybe I'd be able to salvage just a smidge of my dignity intact.

I believe I could've made it. I was about to take my third step, my body turned away from everyone else that they didn't have to see the salty tears brimming in my eyes, when all of a sudden my hand was incased in a much smaller one, it's warm grip feeling so comforting and welcomed that I spun in surprise.

It was Nudge who held my hand tightly in hers, its strength keeping me from falling apart. Her face was etched with worry and sadness, and I could swear I saw a tear on the corner of her eye. She held my bloody hand, never losing eye contact, and I was surprised she didn't let go.

She wasn't going to let go.

A little tug on my arm made me take a sideways step back, and in the next second I found myself on the floor, curled into Nudge's lap and crying in her arms, just crying everything out. I guess along the way down she'd wrapped me in an embrace as she kept whispering comforting words, all the assuring non-sense soothing to my ears.

It was only quiet sniffling and hiccupping as I pressed my face into her shoulder, busy soaking through her t-shirt, so I was still aware of the conversation going on amongst the flock. I found it hard to really focus on one thing though, their voices mixing and melding all together that I was only able to catch a few words.

Small hands were gently touching me, checking for wounds as protocol. I knew Angel and Gazzy examined what they could of me as I continued to hold onto Nudge, but they weren't going to find much anyway. Most of this blood wasn't mine.

"Max, are you hurt? Max, listen to me!" Fang's voice.

"W-where did all that blood come from?" And that was Ella.

"Max, _what happened?_" Iggy asked in a stern but calm voice a little ways behind me, keeping a warm palm flat on my shoulder.

And I desperately wanted to tell everyone what happened.

Earlier, I had told myself that I was going to tell them about this tomorrow. That I would tell them everything, and accept their judgments and insults with a blank stare. Postponing it gave me more time to work on my composure, because I wasn't so sure that they'd comfort me back if I cried. I was scared of what they would say. It was my fault for what happened to Mitzi. It was my responsible for leaving her, and I deserve all the hurtful comments they would throw at me.

But now, hearing their comforting words and feeling so secure in their care assured me that they'd be here for me and listen patiently. They _wanted_ to listen. My relationship with the flock was rocky, but at times like this none of that mattered. At the end of the day, we were still family.

Usually I wouldn't want to put this burden on others, but I was bursting at the seams. Iggy's question undid me, and I just _had_ to tell them. My emotions came over me with a vengeance and I just had to let it all out. I couldn't hold it in any longer.

Just as I opened my mouth, however, more sobbing and coughing come out. There were just no words to say since I was chocking on them, unable to explain myself. I tried my hardest, but they only came out garbled – it was probably sounded like more heaves to them.

The hands came away, and I felt the air still again. Around me the mood shifted as I realized they were finding out more. Iggy and Nudge were still talking in the background, but Gazzy's voice seemed to be the loudest as he cleared his throat and said gravely, "Fang…she's barely wounded. This isn't her blood."

Ella screamed at this, and my entire body flinched.

I held onto Nudge tighter, actually _whimpering_ at the feeling that my eardrums were stabbed with knives and faintly hearing Fang instruct Angel to take care of Ella. It was amazing I didn't really care how vulnerable I looked right then; I was only focusing on one thing.

Nudge, after feeling my body shaking, started smoothing down my hair, not even caring just how dirty I was.

"Shh…It's okay, Max. You're safe now. You're going to be okay," she whispered these things over and over.

"Max, _please._ Tell us what happened," Iggy started again from far away, the desperation in his voice obvious that he wanted to understand. I could only imagine how frustrated he must've felt right now, blind and unknowing.

"Iggy, I-I wasn't fast enough. I just couldn't - I _didn't_ – and I don't know what to do…" I let out in a breath, wanting to explain myself a second time but just rambling insensible fragments as my voice shook.

Fang stroked my fragile wings ever so lightly, his deep voice slow and smooth as he tried his best to comfort me. "Shh…sweetie, slow down. Everything's going to be okay. You're safe now, and that's all that matters-"

"_No, you don't understand!_ Things _aren't_ going to be okay!" I exclaimed, burying my face deeper so that my eyes pressed against Nudge's collarbone and I didn't have to see their faces when I tell them. "Th-they just came out of nowhere, and she shouldn't have – but I-I didn't-" Mitzi shouldn't have suffered, and I didn't save her. Why couldn't I bring myself to just blurt it out? "But I was only walking Mitzi to her car _and-_"

"_Mitzi?_ What about Mitzi? Is she okay? Is she safe?" At the mention of our friend's name, Iggy's voice rose and I could suddenly feel his grip tighten on my shoulder. Of course he couldn't help but worry about her too; she was just as much a friend to him as she was to me.

His question only had one answer, and I could finally sum up everything that happened. The words in my mind were easy to say, but I found it difficult to tell.

"No, Ig," I swallowed the hesitation that kept me from explaining to the flock, speaking so quietly that even I barely understood myself.

"_She's dead._"

But everyone still heard the truth.

* * *

**Hoo…kay…**

**So, completely straying from the solemn chapter you've just read **(and I'm sorry for ruining the mood), there are **2 things you need to know**.

**First**, I hope I can count on you guys, my most favorite readers _ever_, to **check out my oneshot called** **'Bag of Cookies'**. It was kinda posted eons ago, but that story's lackin' some lovin' and I'd really like to know what you guys think of it. :) So far, I've only gotten relatively long, good comments but I'd like to hear from you too. I mean, if you stick around for this, then you'd enjoy that oneshot as well. :D (I'm seriously hoping I'd see 10+ reviews there; don't fail me, please!)

**Now here comes the hard part**: There's really no better way of saying this, so basically – **this story is going on an indefinite hiatus**.

I know I just came back after 3 months and all, but real life's calling is far too important for me nowadays to ignore. I'm not going to expound, but basically I'm swamped with a whole load of work and issues.

It's nothing official though, because technically speaking this story _has_ been on a hiatus since August, or rather, the start of my school year.

It's really touching to see how much you guys believe in me, so I really think it would be best if I wrote a lot of chapters in the meantime and post them on a regular schedule, than having to make you guys wait every other month for an update. I'm going to try my best to keep writing so that when I do finally decide to post, updates wouldn't be so few and far.

Lookout months when I _Might_ (yes, capital M) be able to update are December or March, but even I'm crossing my fingers here.

**Despite this**, I'm still very much open to questions, PMs, e-mails, etc. in case you ever just want to talk or something. :) I'll also still be active in my collab story, **'Unbeknownst'**, so you should drop by there too.

**In other news, **I just realized I forgot to ask a question last chapter. :P And I was wondering…**what does your blood/heritage/ethnicity comprise of? **

For moi, I'm around 1/8th Spanish, 1/4th Chinese and 5/8th Filipino. (I know there's no exact measurement, but this is based on what I fractionally deduce from my ancestors)

It's actually really interesting, so if you don't know yours, just ask your parents! Like, if you're mom's purebred Italian, and you're dad's purebred German, then you're obviously and most probably ½ Italian and ½ German. :) Just an example.

**I hope we can reach 400 reviews, guys.** I know you can do it! Please tell me what you thought of this chapter, if there was anything lacking, or if I can improve on certain things. :D Make me proud.

**Thanks so much again for reading my story! I also hope you'd all check out my oneshot, 'Bag of Cookies' and my collab story, 'Unbeknownst'. I swear, I'm not going to stop writing and I'll be back before you know it. ;)**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	44. Connecticut Connections

Mar. 16, 2012. Friday. (2:52am)

**Why, yes, my friends. I'm not dead. In fact, I turn a year older today. ;)**

You guys can't imagine how excited I was to post this chapter. However, since I still have classes (which explain why I'm up studying for my Geometry mid-terms at 3am), the next update is indefinite. :\ I'll catch you all up to speed in the next chapter, but for now here's my birthday treat to you guys. :D

Thanks so much to **volleychik12**, **maximumpotter101**, **DancingintheRayne**, **MissRandomGal**, **fireflies371**, **mysterywriter94**, **AnikaandAj**, **missangellicdevil**, **GiveMeYaMoney**, **Birds Of Darkness**, **fangsallmine1123** and **Erin319**. :)

Most especially **tweeetybirdieee**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **ShortLittlePixie**, **Birdwatched**, **SharpestSatire** and **mimim1010** for taking the time out to review and answer my question last chapter. :) I just realized how bi-polar and random they must sound, and you aren't obligated to answer them, but you still do anyway.

Finally, this chapter is dedicated to **Soaring Without Wings** for being my cool 400th reviewer! (woot woot)

**Anyways, get on reading! :D**

* * *

My gaining consciousness pretty much epitomized the meaning of a 'rude awakening.'

Opening my eyes to reality, I've found myself crumpled and bleeding in a dog crate, strapped down onto a gurney and staring straight into the overhead lights in an operation room, thrown into an obstacle or maze, being dripped on by either sewer water or bird crap, and there was even that one time when I woke up to absolute nothingness.

This morning was no exception.

My hands came up to rub the sand out of my eyes as per routine, when I felt even more blinded as grit entered and rendered my eyes teary and itchy. My eyelids fluttered, eyes twitching as I blinked the blurriness away, but soon I regretted my actions when my vision focused on my hands on front of me – and all I was seeing was red.

All the events of yesterday suddenly hit me, making my heart leap to my throat as I quickly sat up to take in my current predicament. My eyes first met the huge TV that hung on the wall, and everything else just sort of clicked inside my head.

I knew I was in my room; that much was obvious. My sound sleep let me know that I was actually on a bed, _my_ bed, and I would've thought it was just another normal day if it weren't for my soreness and unease, and the stark contrast of colors around and beneath me.

My pale cream bed sheets were encrusted crimson, and so was the rest of me. I was still wearing my clothes from yesterday, my jeans and shirt uncomfortable and stiff to the touch. It felt like an inch of grime coated my skin, and I was lucky enough that my nose was slightly busted from the break because I sure as hell was betting I didn't smell like lavenders and roses.

Don't even get me _started _with my hair. That was just…_no._

The ratio of wounds to muscle pain seemed fairly even as the cuts pulsed and every single movement sent a wave of liquid fire over me.

But none of that really mattered, though. I was more concerned about the blood that painted my entire body.

I forced myself to get up and going, set my mind with a goal, and everything just turned into routine as I robotically did the things that needed to be done.

I took a bath. I headed straight for the shower without stopping to look at myself in the mirror, taking at least an hour to get myself clean. Time was valuable, especially for bird kids like me, but I had to make sure I scrubbed every single patch of dirt and dried blood off my skin. I even scrubbed at the wounds and cuts, irritating the flesh until I was bright pink all over. I'd have to say this was even the first time I'd given so much effort to my rat's nest of hair as I shampooed and brushed the darn thing thrice, getting rid of any browns and reds until I was positive all that's left was shiny, squeaky-clean dark blond.

Once I was changed into the first things I'd grabbed, a pair of shorts and a nondescript shirt, I changed my bed sheets and put it into the dirty clothes bin. I bandaged the much bigger wounds that I was capable of reaching. And I went downstairs and got my shoes and windbreaker from yesterday, venturing into our forest backyard to burn them.

Every action was snappy and done with utmost meticulousness. It was almost as if I was on autopilot since I was doing without thinking, just wanting to finish my mental checklist and get over this moment in time – this horrible phase in my life.

Considering this was burning rubber and cloth, I spent another hour outside in the thicket of trees, sitting on the ground against a huge oak and occasionally poking the glowing embers at the base with a stick.

Sitting unmoving doesn't busy the mind so much, so inevitably I spent that next hour occupying my mind with thoughts of Mitzi and what could've been.

I knew this shouldn't have happened to Mitzi. Not her. She was just an ordinary teenage girl who complained about Geometry to no end, and spent all her parent's money in Forever 21. She had crushes and passed notes in the middle of class. She talked, and smiled, and lived as a normal 15 year old would.

But I saw everything. Saw how her eyes, the brightest blue I've even seen – even brighter than Angel or Gazzy's – no longer shined with life as it left her. I _felt_ her fingertips on my arm let go just as she let her own life go. And despite the blood rushing in my ears, and the grunts and cries from the battle, her last breath seemed to be the loudest of them all, still echoing inside my head.

_But why her? _She was _normal. _

She was supposed to die of old age, or something just as mundane. Her life had barely begun when it was snatched away so quickly before my eyes. There was so much life in her – I remember she would talk about taking up Biology in college as her pre-med, and already planning the color scheme of her wedding. She wanted to be successful and rich, and she was always going on about how her future kids would take up the things she was never able to do.

She was so ready to face the world. All Mitzi wanted was to be able to look back at her life when she was older and be proud of herself.

But there's nothing to look back at now.

She would never grow old, or land a job. Never have a family, finish school, attend her high school prom, never even experience her first kiss.

And she didn't even reach her 16th birthday next month.

I hadn't even realized that the fire had died into nothing as I spaced out and mused on how easily someone could be rid of in this life.

Just like the flames.

To think, just a few hours ago I was happily catching up with Mitzi while sharing French toast in that diner. Or that she didn't even know she would die that day as she got ready to meet up with me, driving up to Hampton and parking two blocks away from where she would lay lifeless hours later. I'd say it was funny how life works but it isn't all that humorous.

The rising sun brought me back to reality when the bright orange rays hit my eyes, and I had to squint to be able to see. With the job done, I decided to head back to the house and go through the motions of today, thinking that the faster I act normal, the faster things would get normal.

Just when I was a few yards away from the screen door that led to the entertainment room, I could already smell the sweet taste of chocolate chip cookies in the air. The voices inside were barely audible, but I could easily tell that everyone in the house was awake. Thankfully they gave me time alone knowing I needed to think things over, but it was the questioning I knew that would come that made me swallow and take a deep breath before I entered the house.

The first people I saw were the three younger ones slumped and splayed on the couches and floor as they watched the morning cartoons with half-lidded eyes. When I came through the door, however, their eyes suddenly widened and they sat straighter, awake and alive despite the hour.

Their presences followed as I strode into the kitchen, where Ella, Iggy and Fang were. It was my sister who first approached me as I sat down on one of the island's stools, greeting me good morning and placing a plate of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and a mug of hot chocolate on front of me. Comfort food, no less.

Though the flock moved about in the kitchen doing different thing such as brewing coffee, cooking breakfast, or even playing with the uneven-legged chair with gusto, I knew they were all tuned into me, just waiting to see what I'd do next. It irked me to feel their stares like they were waiting for me to spontaneously combust or something, but it was expected anyways. I had a lot of explaining to do.

"So what did you guys wanna know?" I asked collectively after a few quiet seconds, staring at my fingers wrapped around the warm mug.

The following silence told me that they were surprised I was so calm about all of this, so willing to relive yesterday and tell them anything. It took a while for them to figure out how to respond to that, but after clearing his throat it was Iggy who said, "Starting at the beginning would be good."

I tried my best to tell everyone what I could. I began from our walk in the parking lot, leaving out the details of the things Mitzi confided in me that night; that problem was for another time. The fight was hazy in my memory, so I focused more on the main points, not really inclined to giving too many details to anything unless they asked for it.

By the end of my story, Nudge and Ella were awkwardly patting my back and telling me over and over how it was 'okay'. I sure as hell didn't believe that, but I didn't have the energy to fight back or swat their hands away.

"So you left her body there?" Iggy asked, leaning his elbows on the island and sipping his hot chocolate, looking at me over the rim of his mug with his sightless eyes. His tone was in no way accusatory, merely confirming the fact, but I was every bit as shameful when I told him yes.

"It's going to be okay, Max," Ella said yet again from my right. I seriously wanted to retort that no, it _not_ going to be okay, but I let it slide knowing that Ella wasn't used to these kinds of situations. I figured it would be hard for someone to give advice for something like this.

"Yeah. Things will get better, I'm sure," Nudge piped up, using her cheery voice to try to lighten the mood as she now starting to rub circles of comfort on my shoulder. Again, I wanted to question how things will get better for Mitzi if she was dead, but that was just my cynicism talking and I kept these thoughts to myself.

"Mitzi was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Fang decided to put in, as if that made it any better. Basically that statement meant that the chances of this happening were few, and the only reason she had such fantastic luck was because she was with me at that time. _Great._

"Yeah, I get it…" I mumbled to myself but made sure that everyone heard it. Hopefully they got the message that I didn't want their reassurances anymore and that I was done talking about this. I had confessed everything and answered all their questions truthfully. That was it.

Just to emphasis my point, I picked up a cookie and pretended to be very engrossed with it, staring at the chips and chewing slowly to savor the flavor.

"Besides," no one other than Angel interjected, "The Bruisers Itex developed are really strong. Maybe even stronger than all the other threats we've faced. No one blames you for anything."

"Yeah, well it was still my fault. I should've been able to fight them, but I wasn't."

"Max," And then of course Iggy had to join the club. "You were against _eight_ Bruisers, and you were even caught off guard. It's hard enough to protect yourself in battle. There wasn't much you could've done."

Now _this_ made me lift my head and look him in the eye, my gaze cold and irritated at what he was implying.

"_Of course_ I could've done something. It's not as if I'm some helpless Mary Sue running around the streets all vulnerable and inept. It doesn't matter that they were stronger, or more in number, or that I wasn't prepared for this. It's my _job._ The fact is, I was completely useless last night. I could've fought harder, reached Mitzi faster, or even use my force field against them.

"I mean, what was the point of developing this new power if I couldn't even use it to save the both of us. And if I can't even save just one measly person, then how the hell am I supposed to save the _world?_" I finished, still relatively calm that only my voice sounded slightly annoyed and sarcastic as though I was lecturing someone.

Then poor, poor Gazzy just _had_ to join the club as well, taking a few steps closer to me which was a huge mistake on his part.

"It's okay, Max. Look, it's not even a big deal. I mean, people die every day. That's the way life works."

And I just about lost it right then.

The stool I was seated on scrapped painfully on the floor as I abruptly stood up and glared death at Gazzy, figuratively incinerating him with my piercing brown eyes. My body was shaking with rage, face flushed red at the words he said.

"Gazzy, _how could you say something like that?_" I breathed, disbelieving. "Sure, people die everyday but that doesn't justify Mitzi's death. She was killed in _cold blood_. People die everyday, but not the way she did; people don't just get ripped up by hybrids on a daily basis. She _wasn't_ supposed to die; _she was only 15! _Gazzy, you don't even _know-_"

And then I caught myself, shutting my mouth and my eyes and breathing deeply through my nose to calm down.

There was so much left to be said, so much that my unspoken words were enough to write a novel. I could go on about how I could've saved her; I _know_ I could've. I was just too slow, and I was just too weak, and now Mitzi took the consequences of my actions. If only I'd fought a hundred times harder then none of this would've happened. She would be in school with her friends, and she'd be _alive._

What's worse was that I couldn't even get my powers to work that time. That none of the flock knew how it felt to know you could've done so much, only to end up failing and running away like a coward. It was all just dandy for them because they've never seen the people they loved die in their arms. They've never lost anyone to death, so it was fine. The flock didn't _know._

Mitzi was right there. You see everything, and you feel everything. And I had to watch it all happen, not being able to do anything about it.

But I couldn't speak my mind because the flock couldn't know that. None of this was their fault anyway. They didn't deserve to be scolded for something they didn't do, a murder they weren't responsible for. My family shouldn't know what I was thinking; that was the better option. No matter what, I had to protect them from the truth and from the pain. I should at least be able to do this.

My voice was only just rising and yet I could already see Gazzy quivering in fear on front of me, his round blue eyes shiny with unshed tears as he looked up to me with the most scared look I've seen on his face. I could hear him swallow nervously from the proximity of our bodies, and I wouldn't be surprised if he'd wet his pants.

Glancing around, I noticed that everyone's eyes were still on me, their expressions varying from sadness to shock. Judging. Scrutinizing. I deserved no less as I bit my lip with regret, backing away from the huddle and coming to slump in one of the chairs at the breakfast table.

"I'm _so_ sorry," I apologized, my voice breaking at the word 'sorry' since the word was almost foreign to me. "I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean to scare or take this out on any of you, especially you, Gaz. You guys were only trying to help." I mumbled from beneath my fingers, pressing the palms of my hands to my face to calm my nerves.

"It's not your fault, Max. Really," Ella said from far away and a few moments later I suspected it was her hand that was rubbing my back with comfort.

While I honestly didn't believe in their opinions but my own, I decided not to argue with them about it anymore. I was positive that I was responsible for Mitzi, but they thought otherwise. Neither of us were going to give in to our opinions, so I opted to drop it instead. I shouldn't have even expressed that little bit of feeling in the first place. Normally when I did so, someone would get hurt or affected, and if that was the case then maybe I was better off with my mouth shut.

"Whatever," I said and ran my fingers through my hair, raising my eyes again to look at the flock. "Gazzy, I hope you can forgive me," I directed at him, "You're right; it's not a big deal. I-"

"But Max, I didn't _mean-_" he began.

"No, I was wrong," I interrupted, trying to convince them and myself that I was over it. "I shouldn't have made such a big deal about it. Heck, I shouldn't even get so attached to people. But it doesn't even matter anymore, because what's done is done. In fact, I feel so much better now," I said jokingly, "Let's just forget what I said and go back to whatever it was everyone was doing, okay?" I smiled lightly at everyone and stood up, trying to act unconcerned.

"Max, you don't have to pretend-" Iggy started towards me, a soft look in his sightless eyes.

"I'm not pretending," I answered back, trying not to sound too defensive. "I'm _fine._ I'm over it. I mean, the faster we get over things, the faster things go back to normal, right?" I said, going back to my hot chocolate and cookies waiting for me on the island.

Everyone slowly went back to their activities, but I knew they were still keeping an eye on me, glancing at me out of the corners of their eyes and acting extra cautious incase they set me off. I was a ticking time bomb, and it was frustrating that they were so wary of my 'insanity' or something.

Fang wouldn't stop staring at me across the room, and Ella kept sending me half-smiles whenever I'd look up from my plate. Nudge was the most obvious of them all, acting extra nice to me by whipping me up another mug of hot chocolate and infusing her voice with extra pep. I couldn't stand it.

I had to prove to them that I was fine. I don't think I could take any more of their calculating stares or the hushed gossip about what I'd said. It warmed me to know that they truly cared, but this was just ridiculous. I told them what happened and I exploded just a little bit; I didn't want to hear about it anymore.

"Hey Ig," I called out to him just as I was getting up from my stool. He turned around and faced in my general direction, his unseeing eyes focusing on the bridge of my nose expectantly.

"You wanna go to Mitzi's wake with me? I'm sure they found her body by now and I really wanna pay my respects," I said casually, but I'm sure everyone tensed at my words. Even Iggy, who was already pretty much vanilla ice cream personified, turned pale at my choice of words and froze from his seat on the other side of the island, his hand clenching the fork in his palm.

Iggy hesitated for a second, unsure on how to respond. "Umm…are you sure you wanna go? I mean, it might be too soon-"

"Sure I'm sure," I told him, slightly peeved that he thought I couldn't handle it. And if I wasn't strong to save her, then I should at least be strong enough to say good-bye. "I've seen how dead people look, Iggy. It'll be as though Mitzi's just sleeping." I said, though my heart was breaking as the thought of her endless slumber.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Fang, Iggy! Hurry up! I don't know how long this thing'll take but I want to be home before lunch," I said into the intercom, pressing the two buttons that connected to Fang and Iggy's room. Not bothering to wait for their reply, I walked across the garage and just took in all the junk we left laying around here, looking through the camping equipment and the gardening tools scattered to pass the time.

As my mind wandered, I subconsciously started to finger the material of the black dress Nudge lent me, feeling inappropriate for dressing so un-Max like. It was even harder trying not to jitter too much in Ella's shiny black ballet flats that squeaked every time the pair rubbed against each other. I was obviously more of a Converse type of girl.

Then again, it would be even more inappropriate to wear just a black shirt, my leather jacket and boots to a person's wake. I didn't normally visit the dead, so I wasn't really sure what the proper attire was. Last funeral I went to was my brother's, and I was flaunting a ripped and frayed shirt sketched with mud. Oh so chic, yeah?

The girls helped me get ready a few minutes ago, and while I didn't completely agree with my choice of clothing, I figured I would at least sacrifice my discomfort for Mitzi. It was, after all, _her_ wake.

Just as I headed further into the depths of the garage to explore, examining some of the old holiday décor, heat started to spread on the back of my neck like a prickling disease, and I spun in time to come face to face with no one other than my best friend.

_Shocker._

"That's kinda getting old, Fang," I told him, rolling my eyes at the smug smile on his face.

"Doesn't mean you don't still get surprised."

"Oooh…clean up on aisle eleven. I _totally_ pissed my pants just now," I retorted, waving my hands in the air in mock-horror.

Fang did that annoying thing again, where he smirked and raised an eyebrow and just looked at me like I was on something and _ugh_. He drove me _crazy_. "You mean you pissed your _dress_. Shame, really," he said sarcastically, taking a step towards me and tugging on the fabric. "It looks nice on you."

The scent of his toothpaste was making me dizzy with his proximity so I bunched up my shirt and took a step back. My mistake, though, because now I had a good view of Fang and I couldn't help but notice what he was wearing. Stating the obvious, he was dressed in all black (Hold the screams of surprise, people. Don't scare the children.), but it wasn't just a ratty black shirt and ripped pants thrown on. He was pretty much _modeling_ the black slacks and dress shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

It was the same outfit he was forced to wear during the CSM party, except somehow he seemed all the more – dare I say it – _handsome_. Maybe it was because we were finally broken up and we tend to want what we can't have. I wouldn't laughed at his choice of clothing just to tease him, but I was seriously afraid drool would come out instead.

I'm such a man-eater, I know.

Clearing my throat and my thoughts, I smoothed down my skirt and acted casual. "Y'know, if you think making fun of me equates to cheering me up, then you've gotta take some lessons because you _suck,_" I said.

Since I was facing downwards, it was hard to discern his reaction to my statement. It was quiet after a few moments with my eyes still on my hands. Maybe I was a little too harsh on him. I was only kidding, of course, but I couldn't really be too sure if he took it that way. Panicking now, I was getting ready to tell him I was kidding when Fang gave me the shock of my life and said-

"I'm sorry. I'm being insensitive."

_Now _I think we can all scream in surprise.

It was a known fact that the flock and I didn't usually apologize, even when we _were_ actually at fault. Pride was one of out besetting sins, and often we'd just find ourselves making excuses or brushing it off completely. This was a rarity.

Just as I was about to straighten up to look at Fang, I was suddenly pulled against his hard chest, strong arms wrapping around my waist, holding me to him – holding me together.

Oh shit, now Fang was _hugging_ me.

Why the hell did no one bother to tell me the apocalypse was today?

Even after a few seconds, my arms were reluctant as they encircled him, eyes wide and blinking as I rested my cheek against his shoulder. We sort of stayed like that for a while, awkward and unsure of our first real contact since we'd split up, until I finally relaxed a bit and hugged him back with everything I had.

And words can't describe how good it felt.

It was freedom and it was ease; safety, comfort and relief all rolled into one. My mind was telling me it was just his human touch, but while I was in his arms it felt infinite.

It was _Fang._

I was clinging onto him like my core would break if we pulled apart, my fingers fisting the back of his shirt, but the sound of Iggy coming down the stairs to the garage made me pull back anyway and without Fang's touch, I was suddenly reminded of the real world.

I was thrust back into my cruel reality.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The crowd was a thick black sea, surging like waves to enter the tiny chapel the moment I stepped out of the car. Iggy and Fang flanked me as we quickly made our way inside, trying to blend in with the rest of the mourners that filled every pew and aisle, front to back. It wasn't a wonder though, because the Raisons knew a lot of people, and Mitzi was well-liked in this town.

This church was sort of a miniature version of the one I'd seen in New York, with a regal altar and cross in the middle and small murals all around the walls. Stained glass windows painted the dark wood pews in varying colors from the sunlight, and small bowls filled with water were stationed at almost every pillar. It was interesting to note all these strange décor, especially wondering what they all meant, but the biggest thing that caught my eye was the huge white slab of wood position on front of the big table, its sides lined with gold paint and metal handles.

A coffin.

I jerked my head away from the sight, looking for something else to focus on. Up front, I could see a group of people whom I figured were Mitzi's family. They cried the loudest; they were the ones who hurt the most. The neighborhood filled the rest of the church, some of the people here I'd recognize from school.

It was so crowded that I was really starting to get uncomfortable and nauseous, the claustrophobia creeping up my throat. I think Fang noticed this as he beckoned me back towards the exit, coming to stand next to the big double doors. The three of us stayed standing on the fringe for fresh air, but at the same time stayed close enough to hear the programme.

I, for one, didn't really want to hear what they were saying, so I stood the farthest away, my flats on the edge of the first step down the church. I even started to space out, slumping half on the door and half on Iggy, that when someone had grabbed my shoulders, my feet completely let out from under me.

Luckily, said someone was holding onto my upper body and swaying me side to side, flailing my arms, that I didn't totally face plant on the marble steps.

"_Cam!_ Oh thank goodness you're okay! And James! And _Nick!_ You're all here!" the stranger said at a moderate volume. Recognizing that too-goody-two-shoes voice anywhere, I was shocked for the second time that day to be in the arms of Izzy Greene.

"Izzy," I breathed in surprise, struggling to hold her at arm's length and give her a once over.

She was still the Izzy I remembered from school with her long straight midnight hair, always neat and in place with a headband. Her smooth pale skin was even more emphasized by her black dress, and I would've passed her for perfection if it weren't for the bloodshot look in her dark blue eyes that let me know she'd been crying.

"I'm so glad you're all okay. And I guess you heard about Mitzi too," she said, starting to get that puppy dog look in her eyes again. "Y'know, they said they found her in an alley; was beat up by some gang…_those bastards._ She was so mauled up that the wake's even closed casket," she tilted her head towards the altar, where the white coffin was. "The morticians couldn't reconstruct the body. I mean, there's only so much wax for fixing." Izzy dragged a finger underneath the rim of her eyes, trying not to smudge her make-up.

Iggy seemed to have sensed my discomfort since he suddenly put an arm around me, squeezing my shoulders. I knew I wasn't subjected to saying or knowing anything else, but even though it hurt to hear I still wanted to know more.

"What else did you hear?" I asked. Iggy gave a tug on the back of my dress but the words were already out. I felt like not knowing was worse.

"Umm…well, Mitzi's parents were sort of blaming themselves," she told me sadly. "Gosh, they're so heart-broken. They didn't even know she was going out that afternoon, and all the way to Hampton too. I mean, it could've easily been avoided if she'd told somebody where she went. They were _so_ worried sick last night and only got a phone call this morning from the East Hampton Hospital Morgue. _I feel so bad, Cam._" Izzy's voice broke at her last sentence and she leaned into me again, crushing me in her skinny arms and resting her chin on my shoulder.

Hugging Fang was one thing, but hugging _Izzy_ was a whole other. I tried to comfort her back and sincerely reciprocate, but my arms didn't really fit anywhere and I had difficulty positioning my head since I was so much taller than Izzy. Finally, she pulled back with a sniffle, but it was only a second before she tugged me with a whispered, "_Come on, Cam,_" and started dragging me into the church and down the center aisle, bringing us closer to Mitzi's family and friends than I'd wanted. _Crap._

I glanced back and gave Fang and Iggy a panicked look, hopping they'd find a way to save me, but the damage was done and I was taking a seat next to Izzy, right behind a light brown head of hair I was regretfully familiar with from the countless times I'd thrown paper airplanes at.

I hoped in vain that Izzy wouldn't call his attention, but obviously she just _had_ to touch the back of his shoulder endearingly, sending him a sympathetic look as he turned around.

"Hey guys," Bris said softly, no spirit in his voice whatsoever like what he used to possess. His hair was a mess from the constant tugging – a habit I'd noticed whenever he felt hopeless in an exam – and his dark eyes were red-rimmed and shiny, fresh tear tracks on his cheeks from all the crying. It ran down his neck and soaked his shirt; he hadn't _stopped_ crying.

"I'm really sorry," I told him softly, my voice cracking. My hand lifted to pat him on the back, but I thought better of it and dropped it back onto my lap.

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about," he replied with a sad smile, and I knew just how bad this was not just by his tears, but also because he was so no non-sense about things. Everything used to be a joke to him, but not anymore.

It was wrong for him to say those words because it _was_ my fault and I _did_ feel sorry for not being able to save her, and yet I couldn't tell him why. I couldn't give myself away.

Sitting through those speeches were horrible. All the more guilt clogged my veins as relative after friend talked about how great of a person Mitzi was, or how much life she had in her. Going on and on about her sweet past, making my heart sink deeper and deeper in my chest. I thought listening to four was bad, but when Mitzi's older sister Dakota started talking, it was a whole new level of unbearable.

It was different, I guess, having an experiment die as compared to someone completely human. For the hybrids that had wasted away in the surrounding cages, they didn't have people who loved them; no one to come home to, or share secrets, or watch old black and white movies with. Dying was freedom for the School experiments whereas death for Mitzi meant a lot of sadness and pain for all the people who cared about her.

Death didn't go down quietly for normal people. There was a lot of crying, sounds of sobbing that won't go away even if I covered my ears.

While Dakota went on about their childhood, telling stories of how they had their own secret language and used to dance on their beds when they shared a bedroom, I just kept fiddling with my fingers on my lap, trying to drown out her voice – her voice so similar to Mitzi's. She went on to say how they were going to get matching tattoos when Mitzi was old enough, when she was _going_ to be old enough, and driveled more about how Mitzi was going to be a doctor. A pediatrician, no less, because apparently she loved kids.

After what seemed like eons, she finally stepped down from the mic, and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. The bullets I was sweating was hard telling whether it was from the stories, or my claustrophobia, or just one of my episodes, making the atmosphere so much hotter.

And by the time Bris started talking on the podium, that's when I couldn't take it anymore.

The things he first said were like everyone else's, typical babble about her achievements. But then he went on to talk about their friendship, the plans they had together, how much he _loved_ her, and the plans he had of telling her just how much he did.

And it struck me the hardest because what's worse than love lost was love that was never found.

I just about had it then, finding it so, _so_ painful to see someone as jovial and carefree as Bris crying on front of these people, finding it hard to listen to anymore of Izzy's sobs from beside me, and finding it damn difficult to just sit there and have to _listen._

I stood up and left in the middle of the programme, sticking out like a sore thumb in church as I hurriedly walked to the exit and practically flew down the stairs. Hushed whispers could be heard left and right but that didn't stop me as I jogged with long strides throughout the courtyard, causing an array of feeding birds to scatter in my wake.

I could hear Fang and Iggy start to follow me again, their lithe footsteps keeping pace with mine. I was very much tempted to get mad at them for just leaving me, but I knew it wasn't their fault. This whole charade, this wake, wouldn't even be happening if it weren't for me.

"Cam, _wait!_"

_Shit. _And now this whole crappy episode just had to boil down to this.

Spinning on my heel, my eyes immediately met green ones that were telling me so much with that single look.

I was desperately hoping for a clean break. All I wanted was to pass by, make sure that Mitzi was returned to her family and console myself that that was the least I could do. I was to blend in with the background and leave without being noticed, but all that went to clearly went to hell.

Seeing all my human friends made my heart beat painfully, feeling like a piece of my being was missing. I didn't think that these people – Mitzi, Izzy and Bris – would spark such a reaction out of me, making me empathize and care so much. I shouldn't let so many people into my life, but I did, and this is where it got me.

Standing on front of me now, with that tousled look in his hair and a plea in his eyes, made me want to skate in the park and hang out at the high street like before. Drinking smoothies, playing sports and telling stories.

But that was all in the before.

"_What?_" My voice was a whisper, and his comprehension was probably only from reading my lips.

"Dude, why are you leaving so soon? It just started," Zach questioned, thrusting a thumb back towards the double doors of the church.

A few paces away were Fang and Iggy, sort of sandwiched in between where Zach and I were standing a little ways to my left, our positions forming a wide 'lesser than' sign. They too, turned around to face Zach, but the latter was only looking at me, hoping that I'd conform to his proposal and accompany him.

I shook my head in denial. "I just wanna go. I don't think I can take seeing everyone like this," I said with a shrug, my voice sounding lifeless.

He looked genuinely disappointed at my words. "What? But you can't leave."

"Zach, I don't feel so good, and this," I indicated the wake, "Is not exactly helping my case," I pointed out, hoping he'd just drop it and leave me alone.

"But Cam, you _gotta_ stay. I don't even know what happened to you and you show up all of a sudden. I mean, are you okay? What happened?" His voice was filled with concern; it was eating me up inside. "Talk to me, Cam." He took a step forward.

"What's there left to say? Reliving that incident is no picnic, and I'm not open to discussing Mitzi's death either. What do you _want_ me to say?" I shot back, starting to get defensive. I knew Zach didn't mean any harm but he was brushing a sensitive topic here, and it didn't matter if he didn't mean to.

My glacial tone made him pull back slightly, lifting his hands in the universal 'surrender' sign. "Calm down, Cam. We don't have to talk about what happened to you, or Mitzi. We can just chat like-"

And for the second time that day, I snapped.

"_Like before?_" I cut him off, acid dripping off ever word. "Then what's the point? Why am I going to waste my time with meaningless conversation when I could be doing better things? When I could be elsewhere without having to feel like shit, _away from Greymoore?_" My voice raised towards the end of my sentence, getting riled up all over again without bothering to stop myself.

"Wait. What do you mean-"

"Zach, I can't stand this place," I began to lie. It was partially true, but I worked this alibi to my advantage, the gears turning swiftly in my head. "I hate Greymoore and I hate everything in it. I mean, things were perfectly fine back in Arizona but this town just had to screw me and my family over and I just want to _move,_" I spat.

It hurt, but it had to be said. I knew Zach wasn't going to stop being my friend, wouldn't stop prying if I didn't leave him first. He was just too good to me, so I decided that the only way was to hurt him. I had to make him let go.

"Aww Cam, don't be like that," he chuckled, though it was half-forced. The look in his emerald eyes was wary, knowing that I didn't usually act like this.

"And I'm not kidding," I went on, growling through my teeth, "No one tried to freakin' _kill us _in Arizona. Not one of my friends _were_ killed in Arizona. I want to _move._ I want to move far away from this place and never have anything to do with it. I don't need any reminders of this place, no connections, no memories," and taking a deep breath I said, "And no _friends._ I want them all gone."

The look on his face made my heart plummet even further in my rib cage, but that's what I needed – to hurt him. This twisted irony, paining myself as I broke his heart, was going to save him. If he continued to care for me, associating himself with me and my family, he might earn the same fate as Mitzi. I had to hurt him enough so that he would never talk to me again. This was all for his own good.

Across the courtyard, Zach stood motionless, absolutely at a loss for something to say. He never expected our first encounter after the incident to be like this; last time he checked, we were really good friends. He never thought I could be this harsh.

"_You're leaving?_" was what he'd finally decided to ask after a few quiet seconds, Everything just seemed incomprehensible for him that he was even sputtering – something he didn't normally do.

"Sooner or later. I'm sorry but there's only so much I can take. I think it would be best for everyone if we just left this town. There's nothing for us here anyway," I said, keeping my tone confident and cold.

"But what about school? And what about Bris and Izzy?" '_What about me?' _I could almost hear the unspoken words in my head.

"There'll be other schools and there'll be other friends. I'll just never be relieved if I stay here." Glancing sideways, I noticed Fang and Iggy looking back and forth between me and Zach, like watching a tennis match. Their looks were neutral and closed-off, refraining from intervening knowing that this was my fight.

"…so that's it?" Zach spoke after a few seconds again, "You're just going to up and away like you never even came here?"

"It'll be as though we never existed." I gave him a small smile.

"How could you-" he started to say, but all four of us turned around to the sound of clacking heels on stone and the girly voice saying, "_Zach!_" that followed from the direction of the church doors.

A girl with bright blond hair strode our way and stopped a few paces from Zach when she finally took notice of the tense situation. I could probably tell who this was from a mile away just from her innocent heart-shaped face and the neat ringlets that fell over her shoulders - exactly how Mitzi had described her. I remember the description distinctly because of the funny look of annoyance in her face, her dislike of the girl named Celina apparent.

Just then Celina was looking at each of us, trying to discern what was happening. Her eyes first landed on Fang and Iggy, staring a little longer than necessary before she glanced in my direction, narrowing her eyes, then finally looked at Zach as if to ask, "What's going on?"

For some reason, I too, already didn't like this girl. Maybe it was because of the way Mitzi had talked about her or because she'd uselessly tried to intimidate me, but I did have to be thankful towards her distraction. This was my chance to escape.

"Take care of yourself, Zach," I called out to him with finality, my voice pleasant enough to get the message through to the other girl that we were _just_ friends – even though I probably stepped all over his heart just then. Without waiting for a reply, I called on Fang and Iggy with the tilt of my head to come and follow as we made our dramatic exit.

No one spoke on our way to my car, and the silence continued on even on our ride home. Fang and Iggy were smart enough not to ask what I'd done, and they understood why I did it.

While still on the road, driving to our isolated safe house, I was trying to come to terms with what I'd said to Zach. Hopefully that would be enough to keep him away. I wished he would be mad at me so I could avoid him completely. I should've felt good about myself that I'm able to secure his safety, keeping him from harm, but the nagging feeling overpowered that.

Because I've always known that emotional pain sometimes hurt more than the physical.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The emptiness of every room was really starting to creep me out as I strode through the halls of the house, trying to find at least one member of the flock to calm my racing heart. I hated it whenever they'd go missing like this, and I knew I was just overreacting, but that's just who I am. I just always subconsciously looked out for them.

Arriving at the kitchen, I felt as if I'd just ran a marathon, my heart beating painfully against my rib cage as my searched still proved fruitless. Sweeping the room once more, however, I took notice of a blue post-it note tacked onto the fridge and practically flew to it, yanking it off like a madman and reading. Man, I sounded like such a mom.

_Max,_

_Don't go into cardiac arrest just yet. Angel sprung up her brilliant idea of sparring again. You know where we'll be._

_Fang_

I rolled my eyes at his choice of words, though I felt myself smiling as I eyed his messy chicken scratch, his penmanship ten times worse than mine. And that's saying something. You could practically hear the sarcasm in the note, almost as if I could hear his voice reading it out to me; I'm glad he wasn't without humor despite the past few days.

Making my way to the west wing of the house, the portion that we didn't normally venture into, my eyes absorbed ever detail of the designs and structure of the place as if seeing it for the first time. A map of the entire blueprints of this castle-sized house was practically etched onto the back of my mind, my genetically-enhanced memory making ever detail fresh and vivid that it seems each grand white door I passed was painted invisibly with the name of its purpose, only seen through my eyes. The paintings and the ornaments my mom had put up on every wall and corner were even more intriguing than the rooms themselves, the theatre room, bowling alley, ballroom and indoor swimming pool just as useless to me as the room I was heading towards now – the gym.

When I used to train and teach the flock in the past, after Jeb had left us, I preferred the outdoors for our setting. Call me a sadist or a bully, but it was a good thing to expose the flock to harsh elements – even at such young ages. I remember that I would condition and train them in the weirdest places – in the middle of a damp and cramped forest, on a barren strip of road where the pavement was extra hot and rough, and even sparring with them in flight. That's what I figured we would be up against and we had to be ready for anything. Yes, even fighting on the rooftop of a rickety old cottage. You can clearly see we were well prepared.

Once I'd arrived on front of the door of what I knew was the gym, I entered without making a display and stood at the side of the room, observing all the hustle and drinking up the expanse and grandeur of it all that I don't think I would ever get used to.

I could fly around the house a hundred times and still could not fathom how the size of this place, just this one room, could fit into the structure of this house like a jigsaw puzzle. It was exaggeratedly _huge_, with various equipment spread along the far end of the room, ranging from stretching machines to treadmills to benches for weight lifting. A couple of seats lined the left wall before a ginormous blue floor mat that encompassed half the gym's space, a perfectly safe and controlled place and the last option I'd choose for training.

The flock had only used this room once since we'd started living here, more specifically Gazzy, Nudge and Iggy used it once before we ceased to step into the west wing since. All the others rooms, forms of entertainment and fun that only other people would be thrilled to have, just didn't seem to interest us. Our disregard might've been a letdown to Jeb, since he'd planned this whole thing to a T hoping to please us, but I didn't really care. It was only a safe house, after all.

Presently, the flock were each doing a flurry of different activities, my eyes darting ever which way in observation.

Fang was on the opposite side of the room as me, seated unmoving on one of the metal benches. His behavior would've passed off for strange as he just sat there, staring at a spot on his knee, but upon closer inspection I noticed that he _had_ been working out, the thin sheen of sweat making his dark hair stick to his forehead.

On one of the treadmills was Nudge, her mocha-colored legs looking extra long due to her short shorts. She was unusually tall for an 11 year old, but I remembered being much taller when I was her age. Still, Nudge looked totally at ease despite running with faster than the average human, painstakingly slow for my standards, though I had to hand it to her for her still neat hair and calm breathing.

I didn't imagine anything else as I slid my gaze over to Gazzy and Iggy who were rough-housing on the wide practice mat, the loud sounds of their slaps and falls echoing inside the gym. Iggy's sense of maturity was bipolar – where one minute he was look at me with so much meaning, and the next he's spacing out with his mouth wide open – but that was Iggy for ya and I started to smile at their little wrestling match.

Even Ella was here, even though she wasn't a part of the flock, a sort of tail to the group since there was nothing better to do now that she'd stopped going to school like us. I figured she was here as both moral support and the audience, but she was most concentrated on the iTouch on front of her, probably tweeting or tumbling from where she sat cross-legged on the bench next to Fang's.

It was hard to miss Angel's presence in the room, commanding and obnoxious despite her size and age. She was standing a few paces away from Gazzy and Iggy's brawl, hands on her hips in a leader-ly way as she spouted out instructions for them to be serious. It was mostly just sounded like nonsense to me.

Seeing them all in action made me decide to join them as well and I walked around the edge of the room to approach Nudge, mentally choosing her as my sparring buddy already. Fang was the only one who noticed me and looked up, but I was only focused on Nudge as I stretched my left arm on my way to her.

"Nudge," I called her, and she looked up at me from her concentrated gaze in the distance.

"Hey Max, what's up?" she asked, undisturbed.

"Have you fought anyone yet?" I asked casually, still stretching in place as I conversed with her. There was no better way of phrasing my thoughts.

"Yeah. I already sparred with Gazzy, in the beginning of training. It was just a warm up though, but I still won." She grinned at me, flashing her white teeth before fixing her gaze back on the far wall.

Wasting no time, I cut to the heart of the matter. We were, after all, here for the purpose of fighting one another. "Wanna go one round with me?" I asked, keeping my voice neutral as I lifted an eyebrow.

I hated how…_juvenile_ I sounded just then – asking for a fight. Maybe it was because I was used to assigning pairs more than asking for one that it just sounded stupid and crude coming from me. Even being _assigned_ a partner was better than asking for one. Seeing duels in Pokemon sounded fine but when you just blatantly blurt out that you want to duel against another in physical combat – now that's when it sounded silly.

I had to bite my lip to keep from swearing as Nudge gaped at me, stopping in her stride that the conveyor belt beneath her feet propelled her backwards. She was thrust out of the treadmill with speed due to the setting, but she miraculously landed gracefully on her feet and walked to meet me.

"Wait, _what?_" Nudge sounded confused as hell but to me she was overreacting. It's not as if I've never fought her before. What was there to be confused about? "You wanna fight me?"

"I did approach you and spoke the words to question if you'd like to spar with me, didn't I?" I said, pronouncing each word sarcastically.

"Yeah, but-" she began to reply to me but suddenly cut off, biting her lip. I shot her a pointed look to go on, but she looked unsure of herself. Thankfully for her, she was saved by Angel, who suddenly noticed me there and approached us.

"Hey Max," Angel said, making my eyebrows shoot to my forehead. My relationship with Angel, as I'd mentioned before, was a weird one. We knew that we still cared for one another as sisters would, but we weren't afraid to argue with the other either. She was pleasant enough last night and this morning to me, but one wrong move and she'd be off the deep end. It was like petting an adorable puppy only to be bitten in the hand when you decide to cradle it.

"What're you doing here?" she asked me innocently, blinking up at me with her large blue eyes like she hasn't hurt me with her words before.

"I'm here to train with you guys. I mean, weren't _you_ the one who came up with the idea of sparring? And aren't _I_ a part of the flock?" I had no shame in saying this aloud, standing straighter in front of her and giving her a look as I spoke. Because she wasn't the one who had the idea, and she was the one who kicked me out of the flock, and she was not the only one capable of hurtful words.

"Yeah, but…" Was it cruel of me to enjoy the way she squirmed? "Aren't you umm…_tired?_ Shouldn't you be resting?" Doubtless Angel could've phrased it to her advantage, but she probably thought I was still sensitive about everything.

Sighing, I ran a hand through my hair and addressed everyone. "Guys, I'm fine. Honest. What happens to my high school friends doesn't affect me anymore and we've all handled worse things before. Surprisingly, I'm not even hurt or sore from yesterday. In fact, I know I'm ready for this. I'm _fine._"

No one said it, but I'm sure everyone was thinking it. I was unstable to them; an emotional wreckage ready to burst. From all the shit happening in my life, I was bound to go insane, they think. But I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of being right.

"Your lips say yes but your actions say otherwise," Iggy dared to challenge, proving my theory true as he converged on our little huddle with Gazzy in tow moments after Angel. Within arm's length, I reached out and swiftly punched him on the arm, giving him an irritated look.

"But aren't you tired from the Bruiser attack? I mean, you did say that it was difficult to fend them off…" Nudge pointed out. The unspoken meaning of her words hung in the air – that if I wasn't even able to handle just eight Bruisers then I must be weakening. I chose to wave it off.

"All the more reason to train. I may be…_losing my touch_," I amended nicely, avoiding bruising my pride, "and like Angel said, we have to be ready for them."

My attempt at reassurance was a total fail since they all just stood there, looking amongst each other with reluctant eyes. It was frustrating. How could I prove to them that I wasn't weak if they wouldn't even let me train with them?

I was going to show to Angel how strong I was. I was going to show them all that that incident was just that one time, a minor set-back, and that I was still the Maximum Ride they used to follow.

Relieving as it was to cry to them the night before, accepting their comfort and their help, I noticed that they were treating me like a fragile child. The flock was all careful with their words and actions, always guarded around me like one false step would break me. But how could you break something that's already broken?

I decided to resort to my best friend then, hoping that he could be the one to see.

"Fang," I finally acknowledged him from where he stood a little to my right, black eyes meeting brown.

This was sort of like a second test, to see whether he would back me up. It took a lot for any of us to restore trust lost and it was obvious we weren't in the level of friendship we once had, but we had to try. For anyone else, I wouldn't really care so much but for Fang I would continue to give him second chances time and time again. Right now, as we communicated without having to speak, I prayed he would trust where I was going with this. It may sound strange, but I was so hoping that he was going to agree to fight me.

Similar to the looks the flock were giving one another, my question didn't have to be said out loud. For a second, a split second, I almost though he would tell me to rest just like the others, letting me down again. I bit into the inside of my cheeks for that sign of denial, but then I only saw him wink at me and start towards the space of the blue mat.

He was going to fight me.

I tried not to show my excitement (you don't hear that everyday – someone _excited_ to fight their best friend) as I followed him, and felt all smug inside as the flock stood all anxious and worried for me like I couldn't handle the heat.

Fang and I stood a few feet from each other. He was unmoving, his fists clenched at his sides and his head slightly tilted downwards as if he was planning his next moves. I, on the other hand, rolled up the sleeves of my t-shirt and bent my knees, fighting stance at the ready.

When Fang lifted his head, the look on his face was almost menacing as he smirked at me, relishing the challenge. "Get ready to get your butt kicked."

I laughed lightly at that before starting to bounce on my feet, shifting my weight from one foot to the other to pump myself up.

"Quit deluding yourself, Fang. Your ass is _mine._"

And I lunged.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"Oh give it up, Max," he told me, pinning my body down with either of his knees on my arms like I'd taught him in my childhood. His weight on my stomach was making it harder to breathe, my every breath coming out uneven and ragged. But I wasn't going to give in.

With a snarl, I put as much force as I could into swinging my leg up and over, pushing his body off of me and reversing our roles as I climbed on top of him to pin him down. I even elbowed him in the stomach and brought my fist up on his jaw for good measure, smiling saccharinely down at him and pushing my sweaty hair out of my eyes.

"I win," I said smugly into his scowling face.

It took me around two hours to win. Unusually long considering it took me just two minutes to incapacitate a grown man, a few seconds even to knock any high school kid unconscious, but I went up against the _whole_ flock – my family who I'd taught personally, who knew all the tricks I had up my sleeve.

We were all at par with our ability to fly, and we were stronger and faster. Plus the fact that we never fought fair. That's what'll help you stay alive, after all.

Not to sound full of myself, but I was pronounced the best fighter in the flock. It didn't matter that I was a girl because I was the leader, and I trained the hardest, and I was always Jeb's favorite – taught all the secret techniques and shortcuts no one else knew. Whereas the rest of the flock would retire from training for the day when we still lived in the E-shaped house, I would remain outside and condition myself until I'd pass out on the roof and wake up to Fang calling me for dinner.

That being said, I won against everyone today, some challenges taking longer than others. I haven't sparred like this since forever so I was a little rusty with the flips and landings, sometimes stumbling on my feet which wasted precious seconds.

It wasn't as if I was Super Woman though; I've even lost to Gazzy before (Angel doesn't count because she's able to read my mind for my next move). Right now, even with the side effects that were weakening my body at random moments, I sure as hell wasn't weak now. I gave my all, a hundred and ten percent, with every slap and every kick.

Iggy, from underneath me, struggled in my hold but it was no use, and the more he tried to escape, the harder I pressed my forearm to his throat. We didn't fight to hurt each other on purpose; just to tire out your opponent until you can hold them down without them able to get back up. The process was tedious, especially since we didn't tire out so easily, so we tended to fight with more force and end up with a couple of casualties.

When I finally stood up, I reached down a hand for Iggy but he got up on his own, smoothing down his shorts. I rolled my eyes at his hurt pride.

"Wanna go again?" I asked him, trying to get my breathing in check as I pushed up my sleeves once more. I would've asked someone else, maybe Gazzy, but he and Angel would currently being bandaged by Ella, and Nudge and Fang were off at the other end of the mat, fighting.

"Calm your palms, Max," he said in between pants, "You already _won._"

But it didn't seem sufficient enough. I'd fought six times back to back and yet I felt as if I haven't reached the full potential of my long buried abilities. I just wanted to keep training and training until I felt good about myself, until everyone no longer thought I was incapable and weak.

Iggy started to walk away from me but I wouldn't have it. It was a foul move on my part but my entire body was already spinning as if it had a mind of its own, executing a tornado kick as my right leg sailed in the air and hit Iggy, the side of my foot slamming into the part where his shoulder met his neck.

It was a fatal move if done untimely, but I didn't put too much thrust into it. He went down just as my foot thumped to the mat, and I stumbled in excessively yet again since I'd miscalculated my momentum.

"_What the hell was that, Max!_" he shouted at me from his position on the floor, holding onto the sore spot where I'd kicked him and trying to get on his knees.

I noticed some of the others stopped what they were doing to stare at us but I was only focusing on Iggy, my target, the one I'm supposed to win against.

Wiping the blood that was only starting to drip into my eyes from one of Nudge's blows, I got into my fighting stance again and lifted my fists.

"_Again,_" I growled, getting ready to meet his strike with my own.

* * *

**So**, I've not much time 'cause I'm really stressing over this test (on my birthday, no less -_-). I hope you guys don't hate me too much, for leaving you off here. :P

Question of the chapter: **What are your abnormalities? **I don't mean this question offensively. But like, what a strange feature about yourself? A cool birthmark? Big ears? 'cause I'm all ears. :D (see what I did there…)

**For yours truly**, I…have almond-shaped eyes despite my Chinese heritage. Yeah, it's only a fourth in my 'blood', but the 'blood's' really strong on my dad's side and all my cousins there have chinky little eyes :)) Haha! My eyes also have tiny black spots in the white areas. Barely visible, since they're in the upper and lower sides of my eyeballs. I don't know what they're called exactly, but ever since I was little I used to think I had moles in my eyes. There's this belief that if you've got one, then you can see ghosts and stuff.

I've got three and four on my left and right eye, respectively…

Let's just hope I don't see anything since I'm all alone in the dining room. O_O

**I know this sounds sort of rushed** but I'll talk to you guys as soon as I can! **Please review as well**, or ask me anything really. :)

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	45. Look of Horror

Apr. 1, 2012. Sunday. (6:02pm)

**Hello, my friends. :)**

**Thank you so much** to all my readers/reviewers, most especially to **Angelfallen4** and **maximumpotter101** for greeting me for my birthday!

I was contemplating summing up what I've been doing for the past four months but let's just say that the amount of papers and essays I've had to write is equivalent to about 17 chapters of my story. The average number of pages for each chapter is 14 pages. Do the math. ;)

I've also been on an emotional rollercoaster due to my friends and my family and my school, fell into depression for three months in fact, so writing was really my only escape, except that my writing was all crappy because my feelings we crappy.

Considering all the stuff I'm experiencing, **I'm contemplating discontinuing this story.** However, do not panic! There's no definite decision yet; I'm about fifty percent sure of this. It's just that I'm so torn between real life and this and I'm trying to find a way to balance things.

In any case, I'll continue to write what I can. :) **So here's chapter 45!**

* * *

_Should or shouldn't I?_

Taking a deep breath, I eyed the dilapidated yellow folder before me as I sat cross-legged on the covers of my bed. The files have sat in the bottom drawer of my bedside table since I'd stolen it two days ago and there was nothing to hold me back from finally going through them.

Since yesterday I've been training non-stop with the flock in the gym, practicing different kicks since that's what I'm best at. No matter how much my muscles hurt from the strenuous combat, I urged on, knowing that with time I would get used to the pain again.

But time didn't necessarily heal all wounds.

Seeing one of the School's folders in my mom's stuff was like ripping off a scab, causing a fresh wound. I've been free from that hell for six years and yet I could never get over that part of my past, any conversation about experiments or needles or anything pertaining to hospitals sending chills down my spine.

Even just touching the folder felt dirty on my skin, bringing it out of my hiding place and throwing it onto my bed. I was absolutely done with School business; I was over it. But I desperately needed to know…

_Should or shouldn't I?_

I prayed that I would already know what was in the pages of these papers. I wanted a cure for my expiration date, a solution, but not from my mom. I wanted explanations, but not from her. She couldn't have known all about this evil, the complete truth of what they were doing to us experiments. My mom was much too nice and good-hearted for that.

In one go, I flipped open the cover, already feeling sick to my stomach as I eyed the scripted S in dark blue, the School's logo. Quickly passing that, I turned to the next page of the folder where a bunch of papers were all slipped into, the multitude of words swimming in my sight as I'm unable to read all the scientific jargon.

I really didn't want to read these, to go through each and every article for anything on expiration dates, but it was important.

_Should or shouldn't I?_

Spreading out the papers on my bed, I began trying to arrange them in an orderly fashion, stacking all the pink-colored papers into one pile, a few laboratory slips another small stack. At one point, as I was picking up a bundle of documents to rifle through, a black paperclipped one stood out from all the rest, making me scrunch my eyebrows.

_Should or shouldn't I?_

I drew it out gently to avoid messing up the rest of the papers, but my carefulness was in vain since I threw the stack down in horror a few seconds later, my eyes widening at the file I was staring at.

The words on the paper meant nothing to me, codes and various data only the scientists would know, but my mom's name was on the file – the words 'Dr. Valencia G. Martinez' printed across the top.

And it wasn't just the fact that she was responsible somehow, but because the attached photo was even more familiar, the portrait of a chubby baby boy, bright blue eyes, rounded cheeks and all staring up at me.

A sense of déjà vu hit me since it wasn't the first time I'd seen this picture.

This picture of three year old Gazzy, the same one I'd seen before from my mom's books back in Arizona.*

_I really shouldn't've._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Due to training, the hot baths afterwards were quickly becoming my best friends, more so than Fang…

Nah, I'm just kidding.

But the baths were heavenly.

Shutting off the shower with a flick of the knob, I squeezed out the remnant of water from my hair before reaching around the curtain for my towel. I did my usual routine of towel drying in the shower before stepping out, the towel now wrapped around my body under my arms with my hair still dripping.

Just as I was about to reach for the comb on the counter to yank through the knots that always formed in my hair, a superfluous amount of tangles from the sparring, I inadvertently glanced at myself in the mirror-

And I was just lucky enough to have muffled my scream from beneath my palm, wide eyes staring on in horror at my reflection.

I was positive I wasn't dreaming or imagining things, staring at the person before me in horror for a few seconds before my legs completely gave out and I crashed to the floor, only barely catching myself on my hands and knees on the tiles.

I was _shaking_, shaking with so much fear that it was a feat just to get a hold of myself or even gather enough strength to stand up. I remained splayed half on the white rug, no longer flying with the blissful feeling after a shower but was instead replaced by a heat that scorched the surface of my flesh and within my veins – like I've plummeted into the fiery hells.

Holding the precarious towel to my body, and holding myself together to keep from shrieking, I ran my free hand through my hair, but that only caused it to fall smoothly and frame my face, the dark brown strands that were not mine seen through my peripheral. I rubbed furiously over my eyes, but that can't be unseen either. The tears that sprung from nowhere clouded my vision, and they were initially welcomed, but after a few moments of just laying there, I knew I had to get this situation under control. It was easy to live in the pretense of the blur, but an explanation to the whys and the hows suddenly seized me like a fever, getting me all riled up.

I could cry and I could scream and I could even tell the flock about what I'd seen, but I knew that the only way any of this would make sense and be solved was to go to the root of the problem and pull it out.

I was so _sick_ of this, so sick of running into problems left and right just as I'm about to pick myself up from the ground. Time and time again I've continued on with my life, but if I was going to keep encountering these adversities, then I was just walking around aimlessly like an idiot.

This was the final straw. This sick, twisted trick was what did me, and I was determined to do whatever it took to get back what little semblance of a normal life I had before.

Mission in mind, I got to my feet and headed straight for my walk-in closet, wiping off the sweat and bath water hastily and throwing on the first things my hands came in contact with, no doubt mismatching. Not bothering with brushing or cleaning up, I slipped into a pair of boots and headed downstairs, one last thing needed before I took off.

_He_ was the only person I knew who witnessed everything, who had the information I wanted within reach. I've always known he possessed the knowledge, but I never thought I'd need it so much until now. I've tried talking to him before, when I'd delivered a party invitation**, but I've had it with civility. It was time for a different approach.

It was there. In his mind, in the computers, in the shelves and drawers. And the days of his fortune cookie crap were long gone. It was time to get down to business.

He _knows_, and it was time that I knew too.

I was going to pay a visit to my father.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The Nudge Channel was the last thing Fang wanted to listen to that evening.

He just wanted to update his blog and reply to a few of the thousands of messages he received daily to lessen the clog in his inbox. If the laptop propped on his lap was any indication, then Nudge just wasn't one to take a hint.

The young girl just kept going on and on, commenting about every little detail of the TV show they were currently watching. It's a wonder that his ears weren't bleeding yet from her ramble, especially since she chose to sit right _next_ to him, but he was the only other person in the room besides Angel. Said youngest member of the flock was seated by herself on the other side of the room, pretending to be engrossed with the program to avoid talking to anyone else.

Nudge and Angel's banter occurred almost daily now, and it was not the playful kind like Max and Fang's. They fought about the littlest things and they just couldn't seem to agree like they used to, Nudge opposing Angel's dictatorship the most out of the flock. Every command and every condescending comment just set Nudge off. All the members of the flock secretly thought the same thing but it was her who had the least patience of all.

Their once sisterly relationship was now worn down by the constant insult matches and silent treatments.

Fang would've been saved this torture had Ella been here, but she was out on a sleepover with her friends from school. They weren't allowed to associate with people besides the immediate family, even if they were friends, but Dr. M wasn't here anyway; who kid didn't break the rules once in a while?

Iggy was in the kitchen preparing dinner with the Gasman, an occasional booming laugh or two heard from all the way in the entertainment room.

And Max was nowhere to be seen, separating from the group after training a few minutes ago without a word.

"_GAZZY!_" a feminine shriek came calling from the hallway, the stomping of boots on the marble floor getting louder with each step. _Speak of the devil…_

In no time, a flustered Max came into view, breathing deeply as though she'd run a marathon. She glanced around the room wildly, hands on her hips, and Fang couldn't help but note how bloodshot and wild her eyes looked.

"Where's Gazzy?" Max addressed the room, but looked at Fang as she spoke. Subconsciously, she bit her lip out of habit and ran a hand through her messy hair, the dark spots on her shoulders indicating that it was wet. Her obvious unease was disconcerting, like there was an itch under her skin that made her all jittery and unable to stand still.

Just as Nudge was about to open her mouth to answer, the boy in question came running in from the other entrance, standing opposite Max on the other side of the room.

"Present!" Gazzy said, grinning like a fool. Clearly, he hadn't heard the insanity in Max's voice.

"Where did you place your baseball bat?" Max immediately shot at him, getting the words out as she got her breathing in check.

Everyone was subtly reeling at the urgency in her voice; her snappy attitude was suddenly making all of them nervous.

"Umm…why do you need to know?" Gazzy asked slowly, his eyebrows scrunching.

"_I just do!_ Where did you place it?" Annoyance was starting to seep into Max's voice as she cocked her hip, running a hand through her hair again out of anxiety and tugging on the ends.

"Well…I think I remember stuffing it into the third closet on the second left hallway near the main door. Either there or the second closet." Gazzy's voice shook slightly as he looked skywards, desperately trying to remember where he'd placed the baseball equipment he'd acquired when they first began school. From her demeanor, Gazzy surely didn't want to be on Max's bad side any time now.

At Gazzy's directions, Max looked skywards too and mouthed the words he'd said, as if they were written on the ceiling. "Okay, got it. Second left hallway. Thanks Gazzy." Her tone sounded rushed as she darted back around the corner she'd come from, trying to make a getaway. Before the clacking of her shoes could sound her quick retreat, Fang had shouted after her in the stillness of the curious room.

"Wait. Max, where are you going?"

She wasn't fully out of view yet before she bent back, peering her head into the room whilst holding onto the edge of the corner. Max was smiling brightly at all of them. "Jeb's. I needed to know a few things."

"Then what's with the bat…?" Nudge questioned.

And then Max's smile turned twisted, a bitter malice lacing her next words. "Oh, y'know… It's just a conversation starter."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It only took the flock a few moments, a mere three seconds in which they stood trying to comprehend Max's words, but already they were too late.

Only when they heard a door slam shut in the distance did Fang turned to face at everyone else in the room, a slight wide-eyed look in his eyes and a plan forming in his mind.

"Nudge, search for the location of Jeb's house. Gaz, get Iggy and meet us at the front door." Fang immediately grabbed the reins for this particular 'mission', keeping his instructions curt and snappy as he nodded for Angel to follow him with a tilt of his head.

They all dispersed as instructed, with Angel on his heels, heading for the closet were all their shoes and jackets were and moving quickly. Before long and as if it was scripted, Nudge emerged through a hall simultaneously as Gazzy and Iggy came from another. Robotically like they'd done so many times, the other three birdkids deftly put on their gear, and then they were off being led by Nudge, flying in the night air at an increasing pace to get to Jeb's house as fast as their wings could take them, worry and panic invading all thoughts at the unknown.

"Here!" Nudge shouted to be heard over the rush of the wind, pointing at a nondescript white house down below and quickly descending. At first, Nudge had miscalculated her landing and came to a running stop on the sidewalk outside of Jeb's gate, almost tripping on the curb's step, but she didn't stop in her stride and thrust her arm straight out in front of her, making the white gates burst open. The flock kept pace and followed her into the front lawn, looking like her posse.

At the front door of the house, Nudge checked the knob first, which was surprisingly locked. She would've thought that Max would knock down the door herself, making her wonder how she'd entered, but there was no doubt in her mind that Max was already inside. Nudge could feel it.

Taking a step back and a second to appraise it, Nudge kicked down the door and proceeded in. The flock was just picking momentum as they hurried into the house, but a passed out figure on the floor made them all pause for a second for closer inspection.

A grown woman in her thirties lay sprawled on the wood floor, her uniform disheveled at her awkward posture and a pair of black glasses knocked a few inches away from her, right next to a bat_. Gazzy's_ baseball bat. Blood etched the side of the bat's barrel and so did the corner of the woman's forehead. Despite the two inch-long cut, the woman's smooth down hair was almost completely doused in crimson.

"Nudge, Iggy," Fang ordered, and without having to be told anything more they both attended to the injured girl. Fang then moved further into the hallways and rooms flanked by Angel and Gazzy.

Their search was primarily fruitless. The three birdkids moved as one as they checked room upon room, scanning the places in one glance and hastily moving on to the next to find the eldest member of their flock. When they started to feel helpless, they resorted to depending on Angel's ability to read minds to seek them out.

It was nearly impossible, especially since Jeb had mind blocks and she wasn't able to read Max's mind as of late, but it was worth a try. Instead of Angel hearing a thought in the back of her mind, however, they all heard a loud stream of words like shouting coming from close by.

When Fang, Angel and Gazzy finally found Max towards the back of the house in one of the living rooms, they could only stare in shock as they watched her slam Jeb on the concrete wall by his shirt front, one hand literally lifting him from the ground while the other was drawn back in a fist, ready to strike.

* * *

**HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY!**

Okay, so that wasn't the nicest joke ever (re: AN in the beginning), but I can never seem to 'fool' my family anymore. :( They know me too well, so…

**I'm sorry.** That was a cruel joke but I'll post something next week to make up for it. :P I must warn you guys though that **the next three chapters are all explanations.**

Because there are so many unanswered questions, that's the reason it'll take just that - three chapters. Are any of you familiar with Cassandra Clare's work wherein an entire chapter is just a story? Well, yeah. That's kinda how it is.

*Hasn't it ever bothered you that Dr. M had a picture of Gazzy? Because it's always bothered me. :\ If you don't know what I'm talking about then pick up '_Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports_' and go check out chapter 33. If you don't have it, then I was nice enough to type it out for you (note: this is the part after Dr. M removed the chip from Max's arm and Max and Fang were flying back to the rest of the flock):

_I held up my right hand, and he [Fang] reached down, pressing a small white square of paper into my hand._

_I looked at it as he shifted slightly so we were side-by-side again._

_It was a photo, and I recognized it._

_It was the picture of the baby Gasman that Fang and I had found in a deserted crack house, like, a million years ago. I'd left it in my pack, hidden back with the others in the canyon. "Why'd you bring this?" I asked Fang._

"_I didn't." His voice was calm as always, but I saw rigid tension in his frame. "I found it."_

"_What?" That didn't make sense. "Found it where?"_

"_Between two books in Dr. Martinez's home office," he said, looking at me, registering my shock. "Between a book about recombinant-DNA theory…and one on birds."_

**Oh, and if you forgot, it was in chapter 16 - '_Twisted_' that Max delivered the CSM invitation to Jeb's. And the woman passed out on the floor was Jeb's secretary. Remember her? :P

What are your thoughts on Dr. M now? What do you think that was about? Any predictions to what Jeb would tell them? Thoughts or corrections on this chapter? **Let me know in a review!** I'd like to hear from you guys. :)

Peace out!

.: Tiffany :.


	46. Once Upon A Time

Apr. 6, 2012. Friday. (1:34am)

**Hello my lovely readers. :)**

**Advanced Happy Easter to all those who celebrate! **I decided to post this now, even though it's so early, because I'm going to be in mass the entire afternoon today, proceeded by a procession so… I won't have any other time than now. :)

The plentiest of thanks to my readers, and my reviewers **fangsallmine1123**, **DancingintheRayne**, **book phan44**, **star1321**, **Dreamin'OfABlondeFang** and **maximumpotter101** for commenting on the last chapter.

**Fair warning:** This is the first out of three chapters wherein Jeb explains almost their entire lives' stories to the flock, so just sit back, relax, and read on. If some things are still confusing for you afterwards, I'd more than gladly explain them in a less story-telling, confusing manner if you just speak up and ask me.

So, **here's chapter 46!**

* * *

The interior of the room they were currently occupying was supposed to have a cozy and pleasant ambience to it.

The entire flock and Jeb had gathered into the room they'd first found Max in, the living room at the back of the house with hues of copper and maroon. Though there were sliding glass doors that led to the garden patio and the chilly air outside, the grand fireplace at the far end of the expanse was enough to warm the whole room. Majority of the couches and chairs were positioned at the center for guests, a flat screen TV poised on the nearest wall, and on the opposite side of the room parallel to the fire place was an L-shaped bar. It seems to have everything – bottles of drinks, glasses, tall stools on front of the marble counter and all.

The room _was_ supposed to be cozy and pleasant, but the tension roiled thick in the air. In fact, anyone could've imagined that Jeb was struggling to catch his breath because of the suffocating atmosphere, but they all knew it was only because of Max.

Luckily, the flock was able to pry father and daughter apart before it was too late. No one understood why Max suddenly did that. She was impulsive, but not to this extremity. The one time she'd actually killed someone, her half-brother Ari, was an accident. If Max was able to stare at Jeb unfazed as he was beginning to turn purple, his life's breath slowly leaking out of him, then she must've meant business. Clearly, there was something wrong.

"You came here…for answers…" Jeb finally spoke up after a prolonged silence, still trying to get his breathing in check as he slouched in a plush chair. He slightly sat away from everyone else in the room, wary of their actions, but made his voice much louder to be heard.

No one answered Jeb. It was blatantly obvious that Max came to his home for answers, outright demanding them from him as she held his life in her hands just moments ago. All she did now was raise her head to look at him with hard eyes, her posture deceptively calm and relaxed on one of the bar stools. The rest of the flock observed from various positions in the living room, most of them seated on the one side farthest from Jeb.

Finally, after a few more seconds of Jeb contemplating his next moves, he opened his mouth in reply.

"I'm sorry, Max, but I can't give them to you."

In the blink of an eye, Max shot out of her stool and looked about to attack Jeb again, but was quickly intervened by Fang, who'd wrapped his arms around her waist to restrain her. He held Max's thrashing body as she shouted at Jeb across the room, just screaming and screaming profanities without stopping to think about the younger kids who were listening. She didn't care if she was scaring them, or if they thought she'd finally gone insane. She just wanted answers.

Max was desperate for them. All her life, she's wanted to know the truth about everything – what the bigger picture was, how she would accomplish her mission, what was happening to her. She was fine living without knowing before, content with trying to deal with her problems on her own, but she's just about had enough of it.

If the Voice in her head drove her crazy enough to try to take out the chip in her forearm on her own, almost killing herself, then it was just about time that she's exploded with what she's been holding in for so long. This was just too much.

Far too much for Max that seeing her like this made Jeb's heart break.

It was strange because he'd never felt so guilty before in his life – not when he was experimenting or testing her, having her hunted down, pushing her past the limit, or deliberately hurting her. Not even when he'd engineered avian DNA into his own daughter that sealed her fate, or even when he'd had to leave her the first time.

Max wasn't begging or crying for the truth. Quite the opposite - since she was threatening Jeb's existence and calling him ever foul name she knew. She always exuded resilience and passion; it was her trademark. But one look in her eyes let Jeb know what was underneath the surface, and every bit of him felt awful to find that she was _empty._

Jeb didn't know how long it's been or how deep the damage ran, but as Max glared death at him from a few feet away, he noticed that she was broken. That she only looked livid for the sake of body language.

She may have looked the same, may have acted the same, and may have sounded the same, but her heart wasn't all that into it anymore. Given up and just going through the motions of existing.

She was not the Maximum Ride he was proud of.

And for that, he could no longer deny her.

Hopefully the answers would be the solution. Jeb always thought that she would find these on her own abilities but sometimes he had to remind himself that Max _was_ only 16 years old. Something must've happened for her to have lost her spirit, to have rendered her dead, and if giving her a boon was the cure, then he would guide her through this rough patch and help her get back on her feet.

After all, Max would need to be standing to be able to kick some ass.

More than anything, he wanted Max to trust him again. He's been vying for it for two years now. It was hard to get close to her, especially with the history they had, but maybe they could make things right again. Jeb knew telling her the truth wouldn't solve everything but it was a start. He just had to show Max that he genuinely cared.

With that in mind, Jeb cleared his throat to catch all their attention. He could feel the flock's eyes on him as he ran his hands through his hair, sorting out the memories in his mind.

"Where do I even start…" he mumbled to himself, rubbing a hand over his face to try to gather his bearings.

"At the beginning, obviously." Iggy rolled his sightless eyes. "From when Max was born."

"Wait," Nudge interrupted. "So Jeb _does_ know everything? But I thought he said-"

"He's been lying, stupid," Gazzy replied to Nudge but his snark was obviously meant for Jeb. "He's known everything since the beginning and he's just been keeping it from us because we're supposed to find it out ourselves, aren't we?"

"_Well then spill it!_"

All eyes turned towards Nudge at the sudden change in her tone. "You've known all along who our parents were and you told me before that you didn't know. In Germany, when we were in the dungeons, _you said you didn't know!_" Nudge sounded frantic, even almost insane. She'd stood up from the couch and was shaking now, her hands balled into fists at her sides as she stared unwaveringly at Jeb.

Her reaction didn't really come as a surprise since she was always the one who'd wanted to find her parents amongst the flock, but they'd all thought that she was over it already, that she'd come to terms that she would never find them.

"_Tell me who my parents are,_" Nudge ground out through her teeth.

So of course Jeb couldn't do anything else but oblige. He began telling them what he knew, unable to really look at their faces from the shame.

"Your real name's Monique McRae. When you were born we'd told your parents that you died at birth. We took you, raised you at the School…and the rest is history," he confessed. One look at Nudge's face though made him quickly add, "If you'd like, the names of your parents are in my files in the office, though their information isn't up to date," he said, voice tiny but still every bit as loud for the flock's ears.

"If I'm not mistaken, Fang's real name is Jack Callahan," Jeb said after a pause, "Your mother was 18; a single parent. It was easy enough to take you because your mother died at birth and the hospital didn't know what to do with you."

Fang took this all in silently with apathy but only Max had seen the tightening of his jaw for a split second.

"Iggy…" Jeb continued on, elbows on his knees, eyes glued to his shoes. "You already met your parents… Back in Virginia, two years ago. Your real name is, in fact, James Griffiths. We took you from the hospital about a day after you were born. The School didn't keep tabs on your family so you were lucky enough to have found them." Jeb smiled at Iggy as if it was a positive thing, but changed the topic when Iggy refused to look at him, the blind boy's mind miles away.

Jeb then raised his head to look at Angel and Gazzy, both of whom were seated next to each other with hard looks on their faces. Looks far too mature and serious for their ages.

"Your real names are Melanie and Patrick Quinn," he said, pointing at Angel and Gazzy respectively. "See, your parents were a young couple. We didn't research so much on their background but they desperately needed money so they had no qualms of giving away Gazzy at first. They'd even kept the School's contact information because they offered to sell another child, Angel, two years later."

"_They_…they so easily gave us away like that?" Angel spoke up, her voice nearly inaudible as she tried to be strong about this. She's already heard from the whitecoats and read from some stolen files that they were sold, but actually hearing it from a primary source was another thing. Angel had always hoped that there must have been some other reason for her parents to have given them away, but now this made it permanent.

It made it true.

"They loved you, you know," Jeb decided to comment, his voice feinting neutrality, though his sympathy was clear. "I remember that they'd refer to you by your names, Patrick or Mel, throughout your mother's pregnancies whenever she'd had to give the School a maternity report."

"Yeah, but that love wasn't enough to let them keep us," Gazzy said as an afterthought, subconsciously wrapping an arm around his younger sister. Jeb hung his head once more.

It was a lot to stomach, Jeb knew, but it was nothing that they couldn't handle. He remembered all those times when he'd had to lie to them to see if they would pass the School's 'tests', and even this time was just like all those other tests – except now it was all real.

"_What about me?_" Max's voice broke the silence, her whispered words drifting from the other end of the room, eyes downcast on her lap as she swayed the chair from side to side.

Jeb's eyes then landed on her, a soft yet pained look on his face for having to repeat his mistakes aloud again. "Max, you already know your mother and I wanted to be a part of your becoming-"

"_No_," she cut off, "What did you and mom name me?" Max demanded loudly so suddenly, sounding harsh as she brought her eyes up to meet Jeb's.

The room stilled. It took Jeb a moment to find his voice to answer Max, and when he did he tried not to cringe or cry at his words.

"…we didn't name you, Max," Jeb confessed, "You were called experiment 749B."

And if Jeb had once thought that there was any hope for reconciliation with his daughter, the slight shift of her brown eyes told him otherwise.

He'd lost Max completely.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The only noise that could be heard was the crackling of the fireplace and the scratchy noises as Jeb cleared his throat, feeling utterly flustered as he propped his elbows on his knees again and fiddled with his thumbs. The flock, who were still seated all around the living room, waited for him to begin, their eyes on him full of varying emotions. But he wouldn't think about that now.

He had a story to tell.

"Max, you were born on September, 1993. The School had every intention of creating you for the sole purpose of saving the world. We'd known about what Itex was doing early on and decided to take a stand on it. But first, we needed someone who would start the revolution. We figured it couldn't be just anybody, so we created a human hybrid that would be extraordinary enough to do things no normal human can do, yet at the same time be extraordinary for people to look up to and follow. It would need to be one with nature, but at the same time human to be able to convince and lead people. And so I started your project five years before you were even made. I worked with a team of specialists and we'd planned you down to a T – physical appearance, voice, capabilities, reflexes. Heck, we'd even fought about the length of your arms for about a week." An awkward chuckle. "We made you _perfect._ But then little did we know that another sector of the School was also working on their own experiment…

"Apparently, another avian-human hybrid was born about a week after Max. It was perfect too, with just the same amount of thought and hard-work put into it as my project. I was peeved at first that someone else had copied my idea, but later on both parties started to get interested by the prospect of two successful avian-human experiments. So we agreed that only one could save the world and we planned that you'd both be enemies to see who would save the world first.

"That you and Fang would have to kill the other for the spotlight."

At this, the entire flock looked towards Max and Fang, who were both positioned close to one another. They weren't explicitly touching in any way or showing any form of communication but the flock just grew up knowing that it would be the both of them, through anything anywhere, together. They didn't need to see any display to know this.

The idea of Max without Fang and vice versa was silly. The idea of Max and Fang being enemies was practically blasphemy.

"The first five years of Max and Fang's lives were spent training before you both went against one another. So while the both of you were out testing, already learning how to fight when you were merely 4 months old, I'd started a side project in my spare time. I was so intrigued by the success of an avian-human hybrid, amazed that there are actually two of them that didn't expire in a week, that I got Max's blueprints and tweaked it up a bit to make another one. I wanted to see if a third time would be just as successful as the first, purely for my own curiosity, so it didn't take me long until you were born, Iggy.

"Since you were a personal project, Iggy, the School didn't approve and had told me to discard of you. In truth, I'd grown attached by then, so I offered you as a sort of back-up for experimentation. On every other day, different scientists would take you and try their different surgeries and vaccines on you, and when it was over, they'd bring you back to your cage next to Max's. At the time, I didn't realize what I was doing; I didn't know that you and Max would develop a connection, a friendship while I wasn't looking. And as you became friends you both started to learn how to _feel_, which ultimately affected our initial plans.

"By late 1995, another scientist, Dr. Tucker Kennedy, joined my team and was interested in testing if the blueprints to an avian-human recombinant would work with other races. I lent my work to him and he'd led the operation of this new project. He was in charge of creating Nudge.

"So by the time Max and Fang were five years old, the scientists and I decided to see if our conditioning was good enough. You were both so young, but you were both already strong and fast by then. We'd equally given you the best training, had programmed the both of you with special abilities that would help you. We were ready to see you both fight against each other - some of the scientists were even placing bets - but nothing prepared us to see the both of you fighting against the _Erasers_, who were standing guard by the gates of the practice field.

"You were barely able to lay a finger on any of them, but surprisingly you both worked _together _to fight them. When you first walked into the field, you both approached each other slowly, making us think you were sizing each other up. But when both unfurled their wings, fully outstretched to their capacity, Max started talking to Fang in a really civilized manner, almost as if you were just saying hello. And then suddenly the both of them turned around and started for the Erasers and attacked. It was _really_ something

"Eventually, we realized it was because of Iggy." The said bird-kid bowed _very_ humbly. "That since we'd placed Max and Iggy together, they learned how to communicate, how to care for one another, and Max was able to translate this to Fang. No matter what we did, we couldn't get you guys to fight. We'd attempted multiple times and ended up fruitless; it was strange but so very intriguing."

Because the flock's attention had gone back to Jeb, no one noticed the small smile Fang sent Max, or the way Max's eyes shone with happiness in reply. After all, it was always just the two of them.

"Now we had four avian-human hybrids, two of which were supposed to hate each other but ended up becoming friends. Though our plan had failed, both of our sectors decided to team up instead and we used this to our advantage. It was then that we decided to form a flock out of the four of you, and the eldest one, Max, would be the leader who would save the world.

"We kept you all together, purposefully placing all your cages in the same area and within communication range. You developed your own language and would comfort each other. Sometimes, you were all even allowed into the same pen and the scientists would observe your behavior all together.

"That routine pretty much went on for the next five years. If I'm not mistaken, by the time you, Fang and Iggy were six, that was when Gazzy was born. When you kids were seven, Iggy had lost his eyesight to a failed surgery; and then the year after that, Angel was brought into the picture.

"You were all so close. It was truly remarkable how much you all cared for one another, as if you could feel the pain that someone else was feeling after some tests, or you would all equally feel angry and upset when one of the flock was being thrown harshly into their cage. Almost as if you were one in the same person, one entity. The connection you all shared was beyond what we'd hoped for and imagined, something so strong and powerful that not even science could explain it. We've had other bird kids placed next to your cages to see if you would get along too, if you would connect with the rest of your species, but it's always only been the six of you. No other hybrids could connect the way you guys did.

"Soon the scientists discovered that it wasn't just some emotional connection. The more attached you grew to one another, the more your connections seemed to expand in other areas such as your mentality and your physicality.

"With this new information, our team dove into researching what this was and how it functions. There's a very complex explanation, one that would confuse you more, but in layman's terms, the six of you had started to become one. Not one person or one mind so to say, but this is basically the reason why each of you could somehow know where the other members of the flock are. You're all very good at hiding your emotions, but only the six of you know how each one is feeling if you really think about it, even without having to look them in the eye. And each one of you would know if a member of the flock dies; you're going to feel it in your heart, like a gunshot or a stab wound."

"Wait. So it was purely accidentally that this 'connection' developed?" Nudge interrupted the momentum of Jeb's story.

"Yes."

"It probably explains why we can't be apart for so long, huh? I mean, it's almost as if we can't exist without one other…" Gazzy thought aloud, thinking back to the time when Max had run away for three days and the entire flock could only think of finding her.

"It's not that you can't live without one another but you'd be miserable without them. For ordinary humans, if a member of their family dies, sure, they'll grieve but they can get over it. You guys, on the other hand, would feel something else entirely. Added to the fact that you all have animal instincts to protect your kind, it's difficult to be apart because you all play an important role in each others' lives, be it support, love, or anything. That's why it's important that you protect each other no matter what. If one dies, you'll all continue living and trying to fulfill your mission, but it's going to be hard; I can guarantee you that."

"Can you please go back to your story?" Max snapped rudely at Jeb, her eyes hard. There was no reason to be unkind but she was getting uneasy talking about death. She didn't want to think about that yet, or the effects it would bring.

"Okay, so there was one scientist, Dr. Liam Johnson; my colleague, who'd been working in our research station for seven years by then despite his young age. He was there all throughout the flock's development so he knew all about your capabilities, and he knew about the connection.

"We were both in our twenties, both similarly brilliant, so we were equally at par and sort of competed with one another. Professionally, of course. Whereas I had made the blueprints for successful avian-human recombination, he headed the plan for the abilities surgery that Max had undergone."

"Wait. What do you mean by abilities surgery…?" Iggy question warily.

Jeb sighed. He was going to save that conversation for later, but now that it was brought up…

"When you were eight, Max, Dr. Johnson tried something on you. He'd been working on the schematics for over a year, making sure the procedure was perfect since it was a one-time surgery. Up to this day I don't know how he did it since we were against each other, and he knew I was your father, so he kept his plans under wraps and never really transcribed it onto a computer, or put the video in the School's archives.

"You went into surgery, and in the following days after that Dr. Johnson would inject something into you and try a series of tests in one of the School's restricted areas. I'm not sure if any of you remember this, but there was a time when Max wasn't returned to her cage for three weeks, and you probably don't remember this either, Max, since you were so souped up on drugs from the surgery and experimentations.

"It was only later on that I found out Dr. Johnson had programmed another ability into you. He used the connection you have with the flock to his advantage and from there, designed a unique ability that would come in handy. In fact, when I finally found out about this and studied the serum he would inject into you, the potency of the compound should've killed you if not for the antibodies of the bird genes that fought off the effects."

Jeb looked at Max then, his expression serious. "Max, he specifically programmed the ability to harness the rest of the flocks' abilities in you. He gave you the ability to possess the powers the flock have."

"But _why?_ Why would he do that? I mean, he went through all that trouble and spent so much on equipment when I won't even need it anyways. I have the flock." Max was more perplexed (and a little bit annoyed at the doctor's stupidity) than angry at the news, the full force not completely hitting her yet. Or maybe it's because Jeb hadn't disclosed what the ability entailed exactly.

"It's because you're going to save the world soon that you'll need that power."

* * *

**Way to be vague, Jeb. -_-**

**Now…that wasn't too bad now, was it?**

**So, LOL GUYS.** I wrote the beginning of this chapter in February, on the day of my prom. And while all my classmates were freaking out about their hair and make-up, I was just here, y'know, typing up this chapter without a care in the world.

True story, bro.

Sometimes I can be such a nerd. :-B

Since I'm still being a nerd here, I'm just gonna go all out…

**WHO'S WATCHED THE FIRST TWO EPISODES OF THE LEGEND OF KORRA? **8O 8O 8O Just HO MAI GAS. Ho mai gass…

I so freakin' LOVE IT. It's the perfect sequel that I know can grow on its own and become popular with time. :) It's so refreshing, how new these characters and their personalities are.

I'm a huge ATLA fan so I totally flipped the moment I saw TLoK (The Legend of Korra) and I freaked out even more when I saw the characters because _daaaaamn_, that fire-bender Mako is _ffiiiiiiinne_. *smug face* In fact, I even have a girl crush on Korra so I'm totally in love with their ship Makorra. :8D People say Makorra's canon, and I'm so freakin' excited like you won't believe, but I can't help but be a pessimist that there's somehow going to be a catch. :\ The creators are revealing their pairing so early on in the series so I'm willing to bet that the Makorra kiss the creators released in a trailer was all on Korra's part and that Mako didn't kiss her back, and that they won't like each other at the same time until the very end of the series. -_- Well that bites.

**HOOKAY. **Nerd OFF.

**Question of the chapter! QUICK:** **Do you pronounce Ari as 'Ah-ree', 'Air-ee', 'Aye-ree' or maybe even something else entirely?**

For me, it's 'Ah-ree'. It's probably really the other two options but my friend pronounced it as 'Ah-ree' before I even read the series and it's stuck with me since.

**As I said in the beginning,** this, as well as the next two chapters, will all be explanations, clarifications, revelations, and all the other –ations. I apologize in advanced if they'll bore you to tears, because even in truth I spent so much time on typing these out because they were just that mind-numbing.

I don't expect much reviews but _please_, for the love of Neptune, **please read these chapters thoroughly** and actually process what I've said. The information revealed will make so much more sense for the rest of the story, you've all been asking for some answers, and this will supply some of the knowledge for future chapters. **If you're still confused about some details, drop me a review and I'm more than willing to enlighten. :)** I've got an explanation for everything, _except_ for the sudden disappearances of Total, Akila and Magnolia. (My bad…..) Let's just say some other CSM member took them in for lodging because of the flock's current situation. I can't, for the life of me, be bothered to change everything else.

Opinions on Jeb? Confused about the flock's 'connection'? And are you wondering what Jeb meant at the last line? **Tell me in a review :)**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	47. The Blind and Oblivious

Apr. 13, 2012. Friday. (5:56am)

**Hey guys. :)**

LOL. Haven't slept. O_O I've got review classes (_in the middle of my freakin' summer!_) after lunch later, but I figured I should post this for you guys early, so… Wish me luck! :D

All the thanks I can give to **maximumpotter101**,** BlackVenom**,** emotionalpoemgirl**,** BCK-forever**,** AnickaandAj**,** Raeofmydarkness**,** Shovel of Doom**,** vilite246**,** xxSurfingDreamsxx**, **Birdwatched**,** TerBorct **and** Kalianna Loralei **for reviewing! You guys have got to teach me how to be awesome. ;)

This chapter is dedicated to **fangsallmine1123** and** DancingintheRayne. **I was never able to thank them properly, so this is a sort of 'gift', even though it doesn't really have any worth. :P Whether or not you know what I'm talking about, I appreciate you all the same.

Here's the **second out of three** explanation chapters. Get comfy and grab some popcorn!

* * *

_Jeb looked at Max then, his expression serious. "Max, he specifically programmed the ability to harness the rest of the flocks' abilities in you. He gave you the ability to possess the powers the flock have."_

"_But why? Why would he do that? I mean, he went through all that trouble and spent so much on equipment when I won't even need it anyways. I have the flock." Max was more perplexed (and a little bit annoyed at the doctor's stupidity) than angry at the news, the full force not completely hitting her yet. Or maybe it's because Jeb hadn't disclosed what the ability entailed exactly._

"_It's because you're going to save the world soon that you'll need that power."_

"But I don't…"

"Max, never mind the fact that you're not the leader," Jeb quickly glanced at Angel for a second, and the latter had the decency to flush. "None of that matters because it was and still _is_ you who's destined to save the world. It's what you were made for. Sure, the others have powers too, or can fight as well as you can, but it's _your_ job to save the world. The flock's job is to help you in your mission. They may be your family but they are first and foremost your team. They were made to guide and back you up, and if one of them _dies-_"

"_Jeb,_" Max warned; he continued anyway.

"If one of them dies, you have to keep going. You can't let the death of Gazzy or Fang stop you from-"

"_Shut up!_"

"But it's the truth, Max. Dr. Johnson was smart enough to realize early on that if anyone in your flock died, one who had an important power that could help you in your mission, then you would need a back-up plan. Which is why the flock's powers are replicated into you."

"I'm going to save the world with the flock, Jeb," Max said confidently, defending the flock that wasn't hers.

"That might not always be the case," Jeb said, just as confident. He knew that it hurt his daughter to hear, but it had to be said. They were being realistic and she was the one who'd asked for the truth. He took a look at Max's face. "Y'know, I'm surprised _you're_ surprised about all of this. I'm only in the side lines, a mere by-stander, and yet I saw the signs."

"What signs?" Max asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Remember that time you had a recon mission in Salem? Big branch back there, if you can recall. You bombed a few floors to destroy some of their research work, and when you were leaving the place, somehow you knew that the Itex guards were heading in the direction you were going to take. Iggy didn't hear them; they've yet to get within his hearing range, even with his enhanced senses, and yet you were able to hear them. Didn't you even wonder about that?"* Jeb replied, his words bringing everyone back to that night even though he wasn't there.

Max narrowed her eyes further. "How do you even know what happened that night?"

"Max, I know a lot of things. Like the fact that you snuck into my study that time you delivered your mom's CSM invitation and stole some of my files. How's the phone I gave you for your birthday? Is it to your satisfaction?**

"And what about the time you were dragged though the Greymoore High School parking lot and had the skin of your back and wings scrapped off. It should've taken you at least two weeks, and that's if they'd grafted skin onto your back; not four days. You and Iggy were completely fine after that, but it took a while for Fang's shoulder to heal, even though he wasn't injured as badly as you were,"*** he explained some more, looking knowingly at the three eldest flock members. These signs weren't concrete enough to prove anything, but Jeb had pointed out Iggy's accelerated healing – the secret not even Dr. M knew about.

"You know about Iggy's ability?" Max questioned, shocked.

Jeb calmly answered, "Yes."

"And you knew about mine?"

"Of course I knew. They were all programmed, Max. These abilities were programmed into each and every one of you, including its limitations, its strength and capabilities, and when the power is supposed to be set off. I know all about Iggy, and Fang, and Gazzy. The accelerated healing isn't supposed to kick in until you turned 17, but I knew you both had it that time in the hospital. Dr. Madigan is brilliant, but even he can't fix the gravity of what you went through and have you both heal so quickly."

"Jeb, those are just coincidences. The entire flock has enhanced senses, but in that moment back in Itex I was just the one who was paying the most attention. You know we can all hack into computers - you taught us how -, and we all heal quickly; it's a fact. Maybe Dr. Johnson screwed up because you can't prove any of this."

"Then how do you explain how you got in here in the first place? I know you didn't have to break in; even the flock knows. It's because you flew _through_ the door that you were able get in and knock down my secretary. Fang has intangibility and so do you.*

"And don't you remember the first words you said when you found me? You asked me to explain to you what was going on. To tell you why you saw your friend Mitzi in the mirror when she's supposed to be dead. Max, you _changed into_ _her_. You can shape-shift, just like Angel. You're guilty and you can't stop thinking about what happened, so your mind made you think of her, and subconsciously change into her," Jeb said, so sure of himself. After a momentary pause, he raised an eyebrow. "That's the reason you're here, isn't it? Because of Mitzi." And when Max stayed silent he knew he hit the jackpot. But it wasn't his business to pry.

"Now, does that answer your question?" It was one thing for Jeb to be right, but it was a whole other thing that he was so smug about it, grinning at all of them as if this news was a good thing.

"So all this time…even since the beginning of the year, I already had three powers, and then developed a fourth just three weeks ago?" Max should have expected as much when she decided to go to Jeb for the truth, but it was hard to keep the shock out of her voice. "How is this even happening? And why now?"

"Wait, _four?_ You think you have four abilities?" Jeb retorted.

"Yeah, I have super speed." Max ticked them off on her fingers. "Gills, from that time we went to Hawaii; there's the one I recently developed, the force field generation; and apparently I have power mimicry." She turned her attention from her fingers back to Jeb. "Or is there something else I should know about?" She made a face, trying to add humor to get over the serious facts from a few moments ago, secretly hoped that he's kidding.

Jeb starts to laugh, whether from Max's face or as if he's recalling some inside joke. "And you always said that Angel had the most abilities…" He said softly, as if to himself. Definitely some inside joke.

Max is defensive when she answers back. "Yeah, 'cause she does; she has four. She can read and control minds – both human and animal, she breathes under water, and she can shape-shift. She's the perfect freakin' goldmine of powers."

"Well you're wrong, Max. You have six abilities – technically speaking, you possess 16 abilities."

"_Sixteen?_" Gazzy blurted out, summing up the flock's reactions with his own. The number seemed too big – more than his fingers can count.

Max was the first to recover as she crossed her arms over her chest in typical Max-fashion. She was trying not to be too affected by every little thing that comes out of Jeb's mouth. She was the one who'd asked for this anyway. "Okay, I'm tired of being surprised. Enlighten me. _Please._"

Jeb smiled again. It was somewhat sickening. "There are the four abilities you know of. Then there's the Voice – that's one."

"The Voice isn't some godly power; it's a freakin' nightmare."

"You can look at it any way you want but that was an ability programmed into you. It's supposed to help."

"Yeah, help send me to the loony bin."

Jeb shook his head. "Max, haven't you ever wondered why you barely hear from It anymore?" He looked expectantly at Max for an answer but she just continued to stare at him with a raised eyebrow. It was getting annoying how he would keep asking these sort of questions and then answer them for her anyway. So he continued for her. "The purpose of the Voice is to guide you on your path to save the world. When you were 14, it wouldn't stop pestering you because you were always distracted with going to the beach, or Disneyworld, or having fun, but we needed you to focus on your mission. The Voice in your head was given to you to help you, and when you were finally on the right path, It stopped constantly giving It's advice. If you don't hear from It now, then that means you must be doing something right."

"Then what's the other one? What else could I possibly possess that I don't already know about?" Sarcasm coated her every word as she threw her arms up with exasperation.

"Think, Max. It's not something normal. You've experienced it twice already; and I'm sure you've wondered what had happened then."

Max's straight face was unwavering. "The suspense is killing me. Really."

"Let me break it down for you. How exactly were you able to break out of Itex that time you were captured and replaced with a clone? You were all alone. No one from your flock knew where you'd gone to be able to save you, yet somehow you were able to escape Itex and get to them when your clone led them into a trap that night."

"He's right, Max…" Nudge piped up, shifting on her seat to be able to glance at both Jeb and Max back and forth. "What _did _happen to you that night? We all knew you were kidnapped and replaced, but you never mentioned why they took you."

"Oh God, you can't be serious…" Max scoffed, snippets of that night flashing in her mind as an inkling started to form in her head.

"Oh but I am," Jeb replied, not one to read sarcasm. "I'm sure you all remember that night two years ago. Or rather, that morning. You probably didn't even hear Max when she was being taken, but you were all sedated for that very reason. We took Max to Itex; they've always wanted her, and at that point when they did have her, they had no use for the rest of the flock and were planning to get rid of all of you. For the moment when Itex was still focusing on the flock's termination, we kept Max in a sensory deprivation tank."

"Okay there, let's not get into that…" Max tried to shy away from the topic. She had a very vivid memory of that night and it was not one of her proudest moments.

"She was in there for at least 18 hours," Jeb added, as if to spite her. Jeez…

Angel was most intrigued by this. The moment Angel woke up that morning she just knew it was a clone that slept by the foot of her bed, and she had always wondered where the real Max went. She just never got around to asking her what happened. "What's a sensory deprivation tank?"

"It's this metal chamber Itex constructed, for experimental purposes. It's self-explanatory; the tank takes away all your senses. You can't feel anything, you can't see, you can't smell, or taste, or hear anything. It'll drive anyone insane after a few minutes, let alone 18 hours. In fact, I thought Max was giving up too, after the ninth hour when she started crying and singing to herself." Half the flock's heads swiveled to look at Max, but the later was looking at her palms on her lap. "I thought she lost her mind. But being Max, she was brilliant enough to turn the tables around on the scientists and make them open up the chamber to escape. I was so proud of you," Jeb said that last statement to Max, but it was almost as if she wasn't paying attention.

"What did she do?" Angel asked some more.

"She made the scientists believe that she was dead. Max, that's not something everyone can do. Maybe it didn't even occur to you that you _made_ all your bodily organs shut down, but no ordinary person, and not even other experiments can feint death like that. We were monitoring your heart beat and it just suddenly slowed down, then stopped all together. It was terrifying.

"And haven't you ever wondered why your right arm suddenly started to be able to function again after you escaped from the School that time you took Ari with you? Your mother struck a nerve when she opted to remove the chip in your arm and you were supposed to lose its function. You _did_ lose it, but your arm's perfectly fine now. The scientists didn't do anything about your arm when you were caught and brought to the School. Heck, nobody even realized it was dead weight until we saw you only fighting with one arm. But because of the adrenaline rush, because your mind was screaming for you to fight with all you had that time, you _willed _your arm to help you in battle. You didn't realize it, but after the bars of the cage were opened, you were able to fight with both arms.

"So not only can you change your outward appearance, but you can manipulate what's inside as well. _Biokinesis._ You can control the beating of your heart, or the muscles in your arms. I guess that's also the reason why your wings muscles were able to repair themselves so quickly."

After a brief moment of silence to absorb what was said, Max finally spoke up. "So if what you're saying's true, can I cure myself of a sickness or something? Can the insides of my body somehow fight it?" Unbeknownst to everyone, Max was hoping that this newfound ability of hers can somehow rid her of her expiration date. Maybe she can will her death date to move back…

"I guess so, but that's not necessary anyway. Any successful hybrid was made with an enhanced immunity; none of you guys can catch a disease or fall ill."

"Then what's wrong with Max?" Nudge asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

It was Jeb's turn to look shocked at their statement. "What do you mean 'what's wrong with Max?'"

"Well if we're all being honest here, there's no deny that Max has been getting weaker lately." Max sent a look at Iggy, making him pause in his explanation. "What? You know it's true; we all do. The headaches, the vomiting, the nosebleeds, the _fainting?_ Max, you know that's not normal, especially for us. And I'm willing to bet that what we see is only a fraction of what you're really going through." And even though he was blind, the pale blue irises of his eyes seemed to see right through her soul. "Just fess up. What's really going on?"

"I'd tell you if I knew! You think I enjoy wiping up the blood I leave behind all by myself? Or that I'm purposely fainting left and right so that I could have you at my beck and call? _I hate this!_ I hate being weak, and I hate not knowing. If I'd known what was happening I would have done something about it, but I don't. I wouldn't have asked for help or gone to Jeb."

Suddenly, a thoughtful look crossed Jeb's face, rubbing his upper lip as if that helps him think. "Max, sweetie, calm down. It's perfectly normal for you to undergo those symptoms."

"_What?_" was the collective reply of the flock.

Gazzy sat up straighter and cried out loud. "Does this mean she's dying?" And no one noticed the way Max winced since everyone was telling Gazzy to shut up.

"Okay, I'm ready," Max said, leaning her back on the counter and steeling herself for the next round of shit Jeb was about to throw at her. "Hit me with your best shot."

"So as I've already mentioned, your abilities were programmed into you. They weren't accidents due to your genetic composition or the experimentations you've gone through. It was all planned. Because the scientists, myself included, were able to give you these abilities, we'd thought of the specific times when you'd all receive them. We timed them, so that some abilities in the flock would complement one another, or simply because we wanted you to receive certain powers at a specific age.

"Sometimes, the powers will even come to you when you need it most. Just like when Nudge discovered she could feel the emotions and the actions of the person who'd used the computer she hacked into when you needed to steal files from Itex, or when you and Fang developed gills that time in Hawaii when you almost drowned.

"Now the thing is, developing abilities is a lot more complicated than it sounds. To make the long scientific explanation short, a certain ability needs time to develop inside of you until the programmed time we set came.

"For example, the head scientist for Gazzy's operation decided to give him fire and heat manipulation, but only set the date for this year. Now for weeks, maybe even the past few years, the ability was sort of growing inside of him. He can't just wake up one day and suddenly shoot fireballs out of his hands; that would physically tire and wound him. But his body was adapting to the change in temperatures and the production of gas from his pores, and when his power finally presented itself, his body and mind could handle it.

"In other cases, when the ability is underdeveloped, or wasn't able to adjust to your body, then sometimes you'll experience side effects. Some powers have none; there are the lucky ones like Nudge. Others go through one or two side effects. I remember Angel used to cry in her cage from the headaches she was getting. Your mind-reading abilities were pre-programmed to start working when you turn three, but your power immediately started to work when you were a mere six months old. Your mind wasn't even fully developed yet and you were already sneaking into the minds of others.

"I also know that you," Jeb turned to face Fang. "Aren't supposed to develop intangibility until you turned 18. But I bet you kept the muscle spasms to yourself, didn't you? Your flesh would prickle and burn all over but knowing you, you didn't tell anyone about it." Only Max saw the way Fang's eyes widened a fraction for a fraction of a second. And that meant he was correct.

"Same with the Voice, Max. The reason you've been getting headaches before was because the ability wasn't fully developed yet. People were influencing you to settle down on an island," Jeb looked at Fang again,"Or to stay longer in Virginia for thanksgiving when the world needed you to focus. You were supposed to receive the Voice this year, actually, but instead got it two years ago when the developing process sped up. That's the cause of your brain attacks.

"So with all that being said, I think we all know what you're going through. The power to mimic the flock's abilities wasn't set to come so soon, which is why you've been coughing, and vomiting, and getting headaches. You're experiencing plenty of side effects now because you're developing _11_ other powers. It isn't healthy for your body so your immune system is trying to fight it off and reject the change. If developing the Voice gave you headaches that made you black out, then the side effects now are a dozen times worse considering the short amount of time it took for you to receive it. There are 11 abilities simultaneously developing inside you, and it's causing you all this pain."

Max sat straighter on her stool. "But why now? Why is that ability showing up now when it's supposedly 'underdeveloped'? What's the rush?"

Jeb sighed for the umpteenth time, getting slightly impatient for having to spell everything out. "Max, the ability Dr. Johnson programmed into you is surfacing because you're going to save the world soon. You're going to need all the help you can get, and you're going to rise to the occasion whether you're ready or not." His conclusion sounded firm, like it was final.

The flock began looking at one another from around the room, their expression varying.

For years, they've been preparing themselves for this mission as soon as they found out Max was the destined savior of world, but now that the date was drawing near it seems as if all their conditioning and work wasn't enough. They weren't ready for this. From the sound of it, their mission was going to be big with death and destruction, but they were already facing so many problems now and none of them were ready to die just yet.

"_Then take it out._"

The flock were so caught up with their own feelings of distress that they failed to notice Max at the end of the room, boiling over about something else entirely. That throughout the entirety of Jeb's explanation, it was not the business of saving the world that consumed her thoughts, but the cause that brought upon the bigger picture.

"What?" Jeb asked, not making sense of Max's comment. Weren't they just talking about her mission?

"Take it out. Take the stupid power out of me 'cause I don't want it," Max spat with venom, getting up from her seat and pushing up her sleeve to reveal the fair skin of her inner forearm. She didn't know how he'd do it, but surgeries usually start with a single injection. The spot she indicated was usually where all the syringes were inserted back at the School.

"Max…" Jeb couldn't help but deny her again. "You know I can't do that."

Everyone was either staring at Max or Jeb, trying to discern the looks on their faces.

Jeb looked sorrowful but tried to swallow it down; he had a story to finish afterall. It must've hurt, the side effects, but it didn't really faze him. These were just another obstacle for her to face, another test to pass, and if _the_ Maximum Ride has gotten this far then surely this was but a minor setback.

He didn't know how big this obstacle was, or how hard this test was for Max. It was easy to be on the sidelines, a bystander, because he wasn't the one vomiting, and coughing, and hurting.

Max, on the other hand, was livid. A thousand words swept through her mind and threatened to bubble up her throat. Questions left unanswered, incoherent shrieks to be released, cries to express her frustration, sadness, confusion - _everything._ Every emotion consumed her. And it became too much that these thousands of words in her mind could not be transmuted through her one pair of lips. Eventually, she ended up saying two whispered words:

"_Excuse me."_

Before they all knew it, Max ran away at speeds far too quick for even the flock's enhanced vision. She weaved through the halls of Jeb's house, looking but not seeing, until a door loomed up in her immediate vision and she chose the room to cool down. Considering the labyrinth-like hallways and passages of this home, it would take them all quite some time until they found her. She wasn't planning on running away for good, anyway; she needed to hear the rest of the story. Max just wanted some time to let out her emotions and then compose herself before she'd return to the living room.

Standing erect from her slump on the white door she was leaning on, Max realized that she had conveniently barged into one of the guest bathrooms. After locking the doorknob, she hastily reached for one of the fluffy white towels on the wooden shelf and buried her face in it, sandwiching the towel between her face and her palms as she yelled and sobbed and yelled some more into it until her throat felt raw and her eyes dried out. She didn't know how long that lasted, but it felt like forever until Max could only breathe into the soft down, ever intake of breath slightly difficult from the thick material.

Discarding the towel on the ground, she reached for the sink almost greedily and began washing her face to cool off, never once raising her head to look into the mirror. Her face would've been a sight to see.

Multiple knocks on the door brought her out of her trance, enough to make her snap her sights on the mirror ahead of her, grimace at her face, then look back at the door.

More knocks sounded on the door, the raps desperate and irregular. "Max, sweetie, are you in there? Max, open up!"

_It was him. _Suddenly this made her angry all over again.

"Max, are you okay?" Jeb hollered, continuing in his incessant knocking as if his persistence would get her to open the door.

But if that was what he wanted, then she'd give it to him. If Jeb wanted her to open the door then she'd give him the full force of her rage. Everything.

Max harshly yanked open the door to meet him and Jeb almost toppled into the bathroom, tripping forward twice before righting himself. He looked satisfied for getting her to open the door, but his grin was soon wiped off his face as his eyes met Max's brown, mad and crazy ones. The courage drained out of him in a second.

"Do I _look_ okay to you, Jeb?" Max hissed at him, taking a menacing step forward just as he took a step back. "Because no, I'm not okay. In fact, I haven't been okay for the last few weeks because of your _fucking mistake!_" She all but screeched, without a will left in her to be sarcastic. He'd asked and she answered. They weren't joking around anymore.

"A mistake? Max, I know it pains you but you were _made-_"

Max took a shuddering breath. "No Jeb. Getting shot pains me. Breaking my bones and scraping my flesh pains me. But this," she indicated to her whole being, because her entirety was hurting. "_This is tearing me apart._"

The side effects were _killing_ her, she wanted to say. It sounds exaggerated, but she knew it was true and only bit her tongue to keep from giving her secret away. The bare bones may be that they were only merely side effects but to her they were more than that. They were making her lose herself, making her give up trying to fight off death. Max was growing weaker because of this, and without any life left in her, how was she supposed to believe that trying to find a cure to her expiration date was worth it? If death felt this shitty, then she only wanted to go through it once. It just wasn't worth it.

Max's voice could and would never sound like she was begging, her words merely a statement, but Jeb couldn't help but reach out to her as though his hand could keep her pieces together.

His sincere action, however, was a big mistake on his part as she pushed him back with just her thoughts, her force field ability at work.

"Oh, don't even think about it or I'll show you what pain really is," Max growled. Even in this state – eyes bloodshot, nose runny, cheeks red – Max could still growl.

Jeb himself grumbled low in his throat, a sign of frustration. "Max, it was Dr. Johnson who-"

"Jeb, _how could you let this happen?_" Max interrupted, her voice hoarse. It was no longer menacing - which befuddled Jeb with her back and forth emotions – but took on a more curious tone. Like she wanted to know; she wanted to understand why he did the things he did. There must've been a reason; there was always one for everything. Max didn't really want to dwell on the fact, but she was still Jeb's flesh and blood. Didn't that mean anything to him?

"_I didn't even do it!_ Max, it isn't my fault! You heard what I said. I didn't find out about what they'd done to you until after the surgery," he defended, pulling at his greying hair. "You know I couldn't do anything about it no matter how hard I tried." His voice trailed off weakly, his eyes starting to shine with unshed tears.

"Bu that's the thing, Jeb. How hard did you try? Because it's not that you couldn't do anything, it's that you _didn't_ do anything about it. You said you were just as smart as Dr. Johnson. You could've tried to reverse the process before it started to develop and yet you didn't do anything. You should've tried harder, and you should've fought for me," Max said in return, her eyes starting to burn not with fire but with her own tears. And before she could filter her words and stop herself, she blurted out:

"You let them hurt me, _dad._"

If words were knives, then Jeb would've been dead within a second.

"I'm sorry, Max."

The girl in question wanted to say that she was sorry too, for having such a lousy father, but she wouldn't allow herself to refer to Jeb as her dad again. No, never again.

So instead she said, "You mean _experiment 749B_, Jeb. I'll only ever be an experiment to you."

* * *

**Aaand that's a wrap. :)**

*As for the signs I was talking about, if you wanna check them out to make sure I wasn't lying or anything (or if you just wanna recap :)) ), refer to **chapter 7** for the Itex break-in/ 'enhanced senses sign', ****chapter 16** when Max hacks into Jeb's computer/ 'psychometry sign', *****chapter 35** for the brief hospital explanation/ 'accelerated healing ability sign' and ***chapter 38** when we find out about Fang's 'intangibility'.

**I know some of you are probably wondering** "When the frick did she mention about Max going through the door or shape-shifting into Mitzi? The hell's wrong this chick?" but it wasn't explicitly mentioned. :P I was referring to these lines from **chapter 45**:

"…_I ran my free hand through my hair, but that only caused it to fall smoothly and frame my face, _the dark brown strands that were not mine seen through my peripheral_. I rubbed furiously over my eyes, but that can't be unseen either." _ - Max shape-shifted into Mitzi, which is the main reason why she got so riled up and went over to Jeb's. There's also:

"_At the front door of the house, Nudge checked the knob first, which was surprisingly locked. _She would've thought that Max would knock down the door herself, making her wonder how she'd entered_, but there was no doubt in her mind that Max was already inside. Nudge could feel it." _– And Max just flew through the door. It didn't register in her mind at that moment because she was too intent on finding Jeb.

**I hope that's all cleared out. :)**

Question of the chapter:** What are your top 5 pet peeves?**

Honestly, I've got a ton of pet peeves when I thought about it. :\ But off the top of my head…

1. Ballpens. Blue ink. Give me a blue-inked ballpen and I'll flip.

_2. Friggin'. Loud. Sounds._ Okay, I can't even. Like, whenever it's rainy season here and everyone's getting sick, I absolutely _refuse_ to answer my test when it's dead silent and my classmates are like taking turns sniffling and shiz. It's _annoying_. I've literally passed some tests blank because of that. Same goes with mouth sounds. Don't even get me started on finger/pen-tapping.

3. Wrong grammar is just the _worse._ "No school tomorrow!" _Like, really? There'll be no school tomorrow? Will the infrastructure just magically disappear? How did you know of this? Why did I not receive the memo?_ "Can you please open the lights?" _Oh, you want me to open the lights? How do you do that? I'm sorry, but that's not in my skill of expertise. I cannot physically take apart the pieces of the light bulb because the rest of the class might get mad at me for it. Sorry! _Just…UGH.

4. When things are messy or out of order: I'm a neat freak. I epitomize OCD in my batch. The books in my locker are arranged by height, my desk has a certain arrangement, and my clothes in my closet are arranged by color. I can write in perfect straight lines, both print and cursive, with or without lined paper. I know I seem so uptight or rigid, but that's the way I live, and if you mess up my things, I will mess up your life. (I've said in one of my questions before that I'm like Iggy – random, lively, carefree. And I know these qualities don't seem to mesh with what I've just said, but they actually do, and my friends can vouch for me. :D I mean, you can still live life with organization. WADDUP.)

5. People who repeat themselves or what I've said. I mean, I can live with it, since my eldest sibling and my dad tend to repeat themselves like broken records, but it just irks the hell out of me. Like, I've heard you the first four times. Telling it to me a fifth time won't change anything. And not to sound full of myself, but I'm a sarcastic and witty kind of person. However, I'm not obnoxiously loud about it so it slightly bothers me when people repeat something funny I've said, only louder, and they take the credit for the joke. :\

**ANYWAY.**

Did you see that coming? How do you feel about Jeb telling the flock the truth? Are you liking my interpretation of the history behind the flock's lives so far? Any corrections or criticism on the chapter? **Let me know in a review!**

**PLEASE **also check out my collab story called '**Unbeknownst**' if you haven't already! I swear, you won't regret it and I'm absolutely in love with the plot Sam and I have planned out. :) My partner/twin has reigned in practically all her readers and I feel kinda embarrassed I haven't helped out, to be honest. Haha! :)) At least check out '**Unbeknownst**' and let me know what you think so far, since it's only four chapters (of pure awesomesauce!). I don't doubt that you'll get hooked, especially since my co-author is _the_ 'maximumrain3' we're talking about. ;) You can find '**Unbeknownst**' on my list of favorites (under the username 'rememberingtoforget') so you don't have to go so far to find it. **I hope you support me on this!**

**Gosh, that was a long AN. I should really cut these down… :\**

**Recall **the signs I'm talking about,** answer **the Question of the Chapter,** review **your comments on Chapter 47, **check out **my collab story '_Unbeknownst_',and **make **a writer like me so very happy! :D

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	48. How It All Ends

Apr. 20, 2012. Friday. (12:50am)

**Boo.**

So how are my favorite readers? :) And would any of you like to save me from my review classes?

Four for **maximumpotter101**, **AnikaandAj**, **Maria**, **fangsallmine1123**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **DancingintheRayne** and **Emma123133.** You go guys! XD

So now this chapter's for you, **Birdwatched**, for all the wonderful comments and opinions you give that never fail to make me smile. :D You're also my **450****th**** reviewer** (Woohoo!), but that's just an added bonus. ;) You're all sorts of awesome.

**FINALLY. **The last set of answers. Buckle up 'cause here we goo!

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

The flock was smart not to inquire about what Max and Jeb talked about as they all watched the two enter the living room and take their former seats. It was clear there was an exchange, evident from their darting eyes and their red tinted faces, but it wasn't the flock's to know. Instead, they all turned towards Jeb like nothing happened, and looked at him expectantly to continue his story.

The man didn't seem to notice, however. His mind was still caught up with what went down a few minutes ago. He rubbed his hands over his eyes, his extremely tired eyes, and only caught notice of their expectant gazes after he drew his hands away and shook his head.

"Oh, I'm sorry…where were we?" he asked blearily.

Everyone gave him a 'duh' look.

"Oh. Right. Well umm… after that I can't remember the rest of the details. Trust me; they were minor. After the abilities surgery when Max was eight, you all underwent a lot of tests, and mastered a lot of fighting techniques. By the time Max, Fang and Iggy turned 10, I broke you guys out of the School, and the rest is history," Jeb said, summing it all up quickly. He was sure he was missing some details but he just couldn't bring himself to recall each one. And if they were really important, then he wouldn't have forgotten about it anyway.

"So…if you guys have any questions…?" he added, and it felt oddly like a class lecture.

It was like Iggy read his mind as the blind boy raised his hand. "I'm still stuck on the fact that you said Max has to develop 11 other abilities. When I counted them – invisibility, camouflage, intangibility, enhanced senses, accelerated healing, mushroom clouds, fire and heat manipulation, psychometry, metal manipulation, reading minds, controlling minds, and shape-shifting – dude, that's 12." He made a face, his expression saying '_You can't fool me._'

"Technically Gazzy's mushroom clouds aren't considered an ability."

"Are too!" Gazzy argued.

"To be honest," Jeb went on, unperturbed, "These were malfunctions and miscomputations. The head scientists for each flock member were in charge of viewing the blueprints and plans of the things that their sector wanted to do with you guys, but sometimes some flaws or chinks mess up the whole process and we end up with these sort of 'broken parts'. Because there are only the six of your kind, we couldn't have possibly tested out a surgery on another birdkid to see if there are any flaws before we did it to you guys. But the scientists for each of your operations were very careful not to, say, give you purple skin. That's the reason for Iggy's blindness, for example. You also may not remember, but Gazzy and Nudge underwent throat and voice box surgery, which is why Gazzy can mimic and throw voices, and Nudge doesn't tire or strain her voice from talking so much. Gazzy's digestive system was also tampered with. You weren't always this gassy before." Jeb referred to Gazzy, laughing lightly.

"Therefore Gazzy's mushroom clouds aren't an ability that Max could mimic because it's unique to every individual."

"There's one thing I don't get," Angel said, looking adorable as she bit her lip with confusion. "You said you worked for the School. That's where the six of us were made, right? But then later on, when Itex captured Max, you were somehow there in their labs. I mean, don't they know you work for the School? How did they allow you to see Max and everything?"

"Good question, Angel," Jeb said. Max rolled her eyes at his endearment. "I work for both. I'm employed at both Strohelm – the place you refer to as the School – and Itex, but my loyalties lie with Strohelm. I had to pretend to quit Strohelm, and just to prove to Itex that I was on their side, I helped them capture Max that time she was replaced with a clone. It's all in the professionalism. Itex knew that I was one of the best scientists working for Strohelm so they offered me a higher pay, gave me better equipment. Their research was lacking though because they didn't realize that I was Max's biological father. They _still_ don't know that I still work for Strohelm so it's a win-win situation for me. I help develop the Itex technology and occasionally lead them on a wild goose chance in search of your flock, and then I report their plans back to Strohelm and continue most of my work there, receive income from both companies, and I'm also able to tip you guys for your missions. It explains why I'm not very public about my support with the Coalition to Stop the Madness group. Both Strohelm and Itex wouldn't be too pleased about that."

"Well then Itex is stupid. I mean, Strohelm is the rival company of Itex. How could they think that you would go along with their offer so easily without a catch?" Iggy pointed out.

"You're forgetting the fact that both companies deal with the genetic engineering of children and animals, Ig. I don't think they see switching loyalties as a problem. They don't have any morals," Max commented lightly but hoped that it struck a nerve on Jeb.

"So, basically you're an undercover agent for Strohelm?" Gazzy asked.

"That's right."

And at that, the majority of the flock starting spazzing and giggling as they imagined him ala double-oh-seven. Complete with tuxedo and all.

"Ooh, ooh!" Nudge started raising her hand, after they all composed themselves.

"You don't actually have to raise your hand, Nudge," Fang told her.

"Oh, right! 'Cause our birth is nice to know and all but well…you never really mentioned how we'd die and I was just wondering if we do. Die, I mean. Okay, I know we'll die eventually, but do we have expiration dates too, like the Erasers? 'Cause there was that one time back in New York when one of the Erasers chasing us just suddenly dropped dead. Like, literally. And are we gonna die like that? Did the whitecoats give us death dates too? How long does it takes to expire? Wait, no, that's a silly question. Expiration dates _have_ the date. Ell-oh-ell. It's funny. Like, we're alive but we expire like milk-"

Max was thankful towards Gazzy for getting Nudge to shut up, for if she'd continued her babble any longer Max would've been as pale as paper. She was also lucky that the flock was busy teasing Nudge for any of them to notice that she was sweating and struggling to breathe properly.

"Amazingly enough, I don't think your kind conforms to such expiration dates," Jeb said with a smile.

Max couldn't help but ask, getting hopeful. "What do you mean?"

"It was the year 2000, I think, when some scientist programmed expiration dates into all of you. He wasn't from our field, so he didn't know you were the destined savior of the world. He didn't know how important you all were, that is, until he got fired. But the damage was done and all we could do was wait until you all died. We continued with the testing and experimentation, but you three," Jeb pointed at Max, Fang and Iggy, "Were slated for termination the moment you turned ten.

"So in answer to Nudge's questions, yes, you were all given expiration dates. Every experiment needs one because it's the way Strohelm marks their creations. Kind of like how the slaves of the Axis Powers were marked with tattoos on their wrists during the Second World War Once you're given an expiration date, it's up to your body's defense system and genetic make-up to fight off the effects. If you can't, then that's too bad. But the thing is, they never actually appeared on your necks. You were all programmed with the very first version of expiration dates, the one the Erasers had, with the numbers of your birth month, birth year and batch number tattooed on the back of your neck. The moment the date appears, it takes from a day to three months until you…well, expire. For Ari, since he was turned into an Erasers five years prior, they'd updated the expiration dates by then so that it would be an actual date on the back of his neck.

"Max's expiration date was the main reason why I snuck you all out of the School." Jeb looked up at all of them. "A month before Max's tenth birthday, I was supposed to break her out of there. In all honesty, I wasn't really thinking about Fang or Iggy that time. I only wanted to save Max… I wanted her to at least die outside of the School. It seemed pretty stupid considering what I've done, but…I was thinking that my daughter should die happy.

"But when I was unlatching your cage and holding my hand out, you said you wouldn't leave without the flock." Jeb spoke to Max. "You weren't coming if they weren't, so I took all six of you to the house in the Colorado mountains. And we lived."

All their minds flashed back to four years ago, when they were still living there. When they were still happy. When Jeb hadn't left them. When the Erasers hadn't showed up. When Angel wasn't taken yet. When things didn't come down to this.

Their life back then seemed impossibly perfect and peaceful as each of them remembered the best and worst of times in their heads, watching a figurative TV as they replayed certain scenes over and over. But because it was impossible, it didn't last. And because these were just memories, they didn't last either.

"Come Max's birth month, I was prepared for you to die, grave and everything, but your expiration date never appeared. I know it's sick, arranging my daughter's burial at the age of ten, but I didn't know what else to do. I became so paranoid when you didn't die. It's like I was just waiting for you stop breathing or drop dead at any moment, whether you were playing with the flock or having breakfast, and it consumed me. It _terrified_ me. So I dove into research. Yes, I was happy – ecstatic, even – that you survived, but I knew there was a catch. There's _always_ a catch.

"In the School, most experiments die at every five year interval. If a room full of toddlers survive the first years of their creation, then about a dozen of them will expire once they turn five. Then a dozen more once that batch turns ten. And then another dozen when they turn fifteen. Out of that room, around six, maybe seven children would survive the expiration date onslaught. And only maybe one out of the six kids would live till, say, eighteen, because the rest will have died from experimentations. That's the reason why all the experiments seem to be children. None of them are able to grow up.

"There are also some cases where the experiment would expire earlier or later than the programmed date if he was issued with one of the earlier versions of the expiration date. Since it wasn't perfected yet, sometimes it would take effect too early or later. For example, if a little girl were to expire at the age of five, then she could die between the ages of four to six regardless of the programmed date given to her.

"Now because the flock was given an earlier version of the expiration date, Max, Fang and Iggy were probable of dying between the ages of nine and eleven. I was even scared for Gazzy because he was four years old that time and he could've died any moment too, even thought he was set to expire at ten years old. Throughout that time I would always discretely check the back of your necks, or say good night to you guys and be the first one to wake you up just to make sure you were all still alive.

"In that span of two years, I never thought that I would grow really close to all of you. Because I was the only parent-figure, you treated me like your father. And because I'd left Ari behind and decided to try to keep you alive, I treated you all like my children. We became a family."

The flock's minds were still swimming with the memories of the past, swirling and changing to recount their different adventures all together. Their thoughts were like bubbles, the surface changing colors as it floated around, the clips of their childhood dancing inside their minds.

"The pretense of playing family could only last for so long," Jeb added after a moment, almost regrettably.

And just like a bubble, the fragility proved too weak for their harsh reality and it popped in nothingness.

"When Max turned 12, it was clear that the expiration dates had no effect on you guys. Maybe the scientist who'd administered it did it all wrong. I don't know. But for whatever reason it never came and I knew you guys could live. You guys would come to save the world one day.

"So a few days after Max's birthday, I decided to go back to the School. Since I knew you would complete your mission, I figured I'd be of better help as an inside source. I could find out all their plans and tip you off, test your competency for the mission while I was at it. Easily enough, I was able to convince them that another worker had helped you guys escape and that I've been spending the past two years looking for you. They believed it in a second. I mean, it would make sense since I've been working for the company my whole life, and why would _I_ of all people help the experiment I created, escape? So they took me back in Strohelm.

"That explains why the Erasers only found you two years later. I've been trying to lead them off your trail, but I couldn't make them go in circles forever.

"The chip you had your mother remove, Max," Jeb indicated the spot where she had it taken out, pointing to his inner forearm. "Was for my purpose. I needed to keep tabs on your whereabouts so I could direct the School elsewhere, or get them to go to your location when the time was right.

"As for that time when Angel was kidnapped, I hadn't even known they discovered your location until the Erasers were leaving the facility. I couldn't trick them to going elsewhere by then. They were really planning on only taking Angel, Nudge, Iggy, Fang and Max, since Angel was six then, Nudge was eleven, and Iggy, Fang and Max were fourteen, but that's pretty much the whole flock anyway so they thought to kidnap you too, Gazzy."

The latter gave a weak chuckle, but it wasn't really all that funny.

"What they didn't know was that you've been teaching the kids how to fight," Jeb directed his statement to Max again. "So they weren't expecting that you'd fight back, and the School was only able to kidnap Angel.

"The reason they wanted to take you is because they found out you were still alive and wanted to see if the expiration dates would still take effect. The scientists wanted to record how you'd all die.

"Luckily, as I'd suspected, you're entire flock seems immune to expiration dates. The three of you," Jeb pointed at Max, Fang and Iggy. "Are fifteen going on sixteen and none of you have them. None of you are dying." He smiled brightly.

"Nudge, expiration dates are nothing to worry about in your case. You'll all be fine," he reassured them all, feeling content that he had at least one positive news to give to them.

_Wrong._

He was all wrong.

Jeb was supposed to be telling the truth, but how could he just sit there lying to them that it'll all be fine? How could Jeb so calmly tell them that there was nothing to worry about when he didn't even _know._

He didn't know that Max was sixteen, that she had her expiration date, and that she was dying.

That she can't ever be fine so long as the six digits on the back of her neck burned on her neck, burning her life away.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_(Max's POV)_

I made sure they'd all taken off.

One by one, the flock jumped into the air and rose higher into the night sky, hovering thousands of feet above until my enhanced vision could only make out moving dots among the stars. Fang was the last to leave, giving me a meaningful look as we all exited the white gates of Jeb's house. I could tell he was going to wait for me, as he always did, but I needed to talk to Jeb alone. There was something else I needed to ask him; something I didn't want the flock to hear.

"Jeb," I turned slowly to face him just as he padlocked the gate, the white grills separating us front his front lawn and the street. When he lifted his chin up, he looked almost nervous at the thought of more questions, jaw tightening and eyes dilating, but he needn't worry; it wasn't about him.

Bluntly, and because I was so over with suspense, or intros, or anything that would prolong my knowing, I blurted out, "What's the connection between Gazzy and my mom?"

First, he raised an eyebrow,wondering how I knew about any of this, asking if I really wanted to know. So I nodded. Another swallow on his part.

We both knew he didn't want to tell me.

And if he didn't want to tell me then it was bad. He wanted to protect me from knowing, salvaging one of the few good things in my life – my mother. But how could it still be good if I knew my mom was a part of this somehow. He took a step back from the gate just as I took one forward.

But then again, we both knew I wouldn't take no for an answer. And as I came closer, my foot passed through one of the bars of the gate, because of my new ability. Because this was partially his fault.

And so he sighed, defeated. "Max…your mother was responsible for experiment 5512.

"She was the head scientist for Gazzy's operation."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

**This was a pretty cheap shot chapter.**

I mean, Nudge so _coincidentally_ asks about expiration dates when this is _exactly_ what Max needs to find out? *gasp!* How utterly convenient!

(Note the sarcasm.)

So I apologize for that. :P I was really thinking about it, how it would be brought up and everything, but if I were part of the flock I think it'd be logical to ask how we'd die, since a birdkid's entire existence is so sketchy and vague. But if it seems too out there…then my bad. I didn't know how to put it any other way.

**In other news: **remember I said '3 big 'somethin'-somethin's' are going to happen before the big unveiling of Max's expiration date? (Re: Chapter 41 bottom AN) Well we're done with the first two, which is **Mitzi's death** and **Max getting the answers from Jeb**. Anyone wanna **guess what the third one will be**? :D

Tanong ng Kabanata (Question of the Chapter!): **Give three fun facts about yourself.** :P Doesn't have to be personal. Make sure it's fun!

**Uno**, I am a carbon-copy of my older sister. The one I mentioned before – Tori. Same features, same body type and everything. In fact, when people mistake us for twins we just agree with them and go along with it so we don't have to explain the whole '3-years-older' bit. I mean, we have different hair lengths, and mannerisms (and I am taller by two inches. BOO-YAH!), but we're so alike; it's scary. So not only do we think the same; we look the same. (I practically have no privacy.)

**Dalawa**, I can't swim to save my life. No joke. I took swimming lessons but they were a bust. The best of my abilities is the back stroke and the doggy paddle, but that can only go on for so long till I drown or something. Heck, I can't even tread. All my friends make fun of me by going to the deep part of the pool. Bitches.

**Lastly**…I've scared myself once. I probably sound like a lunatic, but I'm known for sending weird and funny faces to my friends in between class. Like, at random moments if they happen to glance at me, I'll shot them a really ugly facial expression just to distract them or get them in trouble or make them laugh. So there was this one time I was practicing my funny faces in front of my mirror in the bathroom. Y'know, doing this and that, trying to come up with a new one or something when suddenly, I made this really scary face and scared the crap out of myself. For real. I ran to my parents' room after that.

**And there you have it. **

How do you feel about Max developing everyone's powers?

Liking the fact that I gave the School a proper name?

Did Nudge's curiosity on expiration dates seem too convenient?

Does my explanation regarding expiration dates seem too far-fetched/exaggerated?

Any guesses as to what the third big 'somethin'-somethin' is?

Do you think I'm weird for scaring myself?

And did you notice any mistakes I might've missed?

**TELL ME IN A REVIEW! :)**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	49. Author's Note 3

**Hello my lovely readers!**

I could apologize for eternity for the extremely long wait but you guys probably rather I go straight to the point.

**I'm busy.** And I know that's always my excuse, but that's the real reason anyway. My classes started two weeks ago and it's already hella hectic – projects, papers, group presentations. I've got 3 additional subjects this year and my school's very competitive so I'm working double time to retain my position as one of the honor students. I've got extra curriculars – school newspaper and a couple of orgs, and we've got our school's parade thing coming up. Not to mention I'll be taking college entrance exams in between the months of August to October, with SATs and IELTs inserted in between. And did I mention there's some family drama added to the mix?

I was planning on wrapping this all up by the release of 'Nevermore' in August, but clearly I can't make the cut off. :\ **However, I'm still working on this story whenever I find the free time.** In fact, I've got 3 and a half chapters written, edited and ready for posting, but I figured you'd want my updates to be scheduled and frequent instead of updating 'Secrets and Lies' every other month. The next few chapters are a doozy, I'm not even kidding, so I'm doing you guys a favor too. :P

**I'm going to finish this story.** I've promised, haven't I? Many times I've been let down by authors who just stop writing altogether, and I would hate to do that to you guys. This may not even be the most popular story, or even greatly written for that matter, but so long as one person continues to read it, then I would continue to write it. :)

I hope I didn't lose any of you guys. I know how it feels to wait for updates – I'm the least patient person you will ever meet – but I assure you, it'll be worth it. I really do wish you'd all stick around and I can't wait till I get back on here and finish this baby. ;)

Peace out for now,

.: Tiffany :.

P.S. My OCD got the better of me so I gave in and **made covers for all my stories** :D Go check them out! They're nothing much, just quick edits to be able to put something up, but I'll let you guys decide. Which one do you like most? Because I personally enjoy the cover for this story the most. :P


	50. Fallen Angel

Aug. 9, 2012. Thursday. 3:49am

**So.**

I opened up this baby and read the pre-written AN that I typed up back in May, when I thought I'd be able to update S&L. I was complaining about the unbearable scorching heat (97 degrees Fahrenheit), but it's crazy because I didn't think 3 months later I'd be praying and begging for the sun.

**But anyways.**

1. I hope you all read this chapter from start to finish, including the AN. It's hella long, but you might benefit from the things I have to say.

2. This update came out of the blue. I'm still very much busy – college entrance exams, mid-terms and the likes, but I need to get 2 more things out.

3. First (or should I say third?), please, _**please**_** pray for the Philippines.** My country is in desperate need of help. I know the whole world's in havoc right now: the earthquake in California, the volcanic eruption in New Zealand, the sudden snow in South Africa, and many more, but our land is _literally_ underwater right now – the floods have reached up to the 2nd floor of houses and buildings in certain places – and many have lost their homes, family members, everything they have. The Philippines is really coming together but the rains that destroyed many was merely _just_ rain – from the monsoon. There's a typhoon coming soon, and while we're usually prepared for these things, we're still trying to recover and heal. Not all of us have the same religion but it really helps to just pray. It'll make a huge difference. :)

4. Classes have been suspended for the past 4 days so **I was able to read 'Nevermore'** on iBooks. I can't believe that I just read the last book of the series of my sort-of childhood. I grew up with Max – it was the series that got me reading, that got me writing, that taught me how to be witty and sarcastic and strong and caring, even at the tender age of 11. While I'm saddened deep down inside (and this will probably hit me harder later), I'm also glad it finally came to a close. I mean, JP could only write the series for so long, and I'm sure he was getting sick of it. I definitely did _not_ expect an ending like that, but I knew it was going to be a happy ending, and I guess that was the only way the flock would ever be happy. However – as if I was completely satisfied with the book – I have a bone to pick with JP. I've got both praises and complaints (boy, do I feel strongly about this series…) While he was able to tie up most of the loose ends, there are still dozens of questions that he failed to answer. I can go on about them. And most of all, it seems as if JP focused more on the romance than the plot itself. Get what I mean? Like, there were still concrete chapters about all the 'saving the world' shebang, but it was also as if he only wrote the fact that Dylan got pissed and flipped his shit on an innocent town to get Max and Fang together, or that JP made Maya die and made Fang ditch the rest of his gang in a matter of a few chapters just to get him to look for Max. I understood the book in a way I never would have if I read it at the age of 11 – it was more mature, with a lot more metaphors that would confuse a child. And I completely get the way Max, Fang, Dylan and Maya acted. Every single decision and action they made. It just seems like he tailored the plot of this last book to fit the romance; and JP definitely could've written it better (he positively loves his descriptively, emotionally, exaggeratedly, wordily adverbs!), should've put more heart and soul into this last piece of work that thousands of children grew to love.

5. (Wait. Why am I still numbering this thing?) Wow. That was long. **If you've got your comments, complaints, praise about 'Nevermore' and want to rant to someone about them, chat me up.** ;) I'm just a PM/review away!

6. You might mention in your review (if you review) that I have very long ANs. I totally get what you mean; you don't have to mention it twice. I just really like to share things.

Thank you, thank you, _thank you_ to **book phan44**, **ShortLittlePixie**, **BlackVenom**, **DancingintheRayne**, **fangsallmine1123**, **maximumpotter101**, **AnikaandAj**, ** . **, **Birdwatched**, **Dawolfman91**, **TerBorct**, **Kalianna Loralei**, **cat musketeer**, **FrenchFrylovesMaximumRide**, **MaxPercyClaryNewtLenaKatniss Ky**, **mysterywriter94**, **everlastingwolflove**, **Anonymous** and **SharpestSatire** for showing this story some lovin'. And thanks even to the people who just read this, though your opinion would be very much appreciated. I didn't even think some of you would comment on my AN last chapter and every single review warms my heart every single time. :)

**The beginning** turned out a lot more dramatic than I intended, but I proved a point anyway. And** the end** of this chapter shows the beginning of the third big 'somethin'-somethin'', so sit tight. ;)

* * *

Looking back at it, I still can't believe I've got an IQ above 190.

It was almost as if these specific incidents happened so consecutively just for the sole purpose of helping me figure it all out, and yet I still ended up discovering my sixth ability - freaking _power mimicry!_ - through _Jeb_ (of all people).

Lying in bed the following Saturday morning, fresh out of the shower, I've been adding specific instances to my list of bleeping obvious 'signs' that I failed so epically at noticing, and so far I ended up with 14.

_Fourteen flippin' signs_.

How had the flock put up with my stupidity for so long? How had Fang endured my inability to see his acts of affection before finally spelling it out that he loved me? Because I'm quite appalled with myself that I haven't kicked my own ass to Melbourne or something.

The signs, they were everywhere. Even the smallest detail meant so much without my knowing. With my enhanced memory, I thought back to all the events since the beginning of the year and wanted to bash my skull against the headboard the more it came back to me. Heck, I bet these signs even spanned to the latter months of last year.

I pressed the heels of my palms into my eye sockets, remembering the obvious.

What did I think was happening that time Iggy and I ran into Fang and his group of friends at the mall? Everyone was spouting out random thoughts, Fang called me by my real name as if I weren't even there, and Izzy pretty much announced to the whole world that she thought one of Fang's friends was cute. But apparently it was all just in my head. I was _reading their minds._ Why didn't I further question what had happened?

It was also just my luck that I'd gotten Izzy's secret admirer at first guess, even knowing his last name to my astonishment, but I was never lucky and I didn't even know what I was doing. The moment I grasped the note, light on my fingertips, his name was projected into my thoughts out of nowhere. Now that I ponder this, I didn't guess Mason Turner because I was getting better at teenage girl games, but because he wrote and held the note first and I knew this. His prints, and his identity, and his thoughts and feelings were embedded onto the love note, and I was dumb to have overlooked the fact that I've never even talked to the guy, much less formally meet him.

Another sign that was like a slap in my face was the day the flock and I skipped school to spend more time together. We were playing hide and seek, and I distinctly remember seeing the thoughts that were not mine, running and searching around the house while my physical body hid underneath the kitchen island, unmoving. I was the seeker, in Gazzy's mind, and this whole episode continued on its downward spiral when Gazzy found me in the kitchen and mistook me for Angel. I'm willing to bet this case remained on everyone's minds for days, but I was foolish not to press the issue. I didn't tell anyone that I was in Gazzy's mind, not even Fang, and I didn't worry enough why Gazzy saw me as little Angel instead of what I really looked like.

And now it all made sense why the flock didn't notice or even see me that day in the entertainment room when they were arguing. They continued their conversation about a mission, and about me, while I stood still by the entrance just eavesdropping in 'plain sight'. I admitted it was weird; I knew then that they couldn't see me until I showed myself and spoke up against Angel, but I never came to the conclusion that I had developed Fang's power of invisibility. I passed it off as a coincidence, a mere stroke of luck, or even stupidity on the flock's part.

More instances continued to flood my mind, recalling what Jeb had mentioned. I must've used Iggy's enhanced senses to better him during that mission in Salem, when I heard the Itex guards even before Iggy, and managed to successfully escape with the flock. I somehow knew every password and every code the moment I laid my fingers on Jeb's computer keyboard when I snuck into his office and stole some of his files. I healed so quickly - a span of only four days - from the parking lot incident that left me bloody, bruised and broken, when I knew that it should've taken me weeks to heal, or even more realistically kill me from the gravity of my gushing wounds and broken bones.

Looking back at it, it was a wonder how Gazzy's old school principal, the uptight Mr. Cater with a branch up his ass, easily let Gazzy off the hook without so much as a fight after I was able convince him some. Gazzy had allegedly defaced school property and yet there was no suspension, nor sanction, or even a day of detention. He believed my defense in seconds. There was the time I'd thrown a knife at Fang with accuracy and precision, even though that wasn't in my list of expertise; and there was the other time I knew that Angel was having a nightmare, sharing her dream. I also knew that Nudge had gone through my room when I was still angry with the flock, the sense of her touch imprinted all over my things that pissed me even more during that time.

There were even the little things that I could've overlooked if I didn't sort my thoughts so thoroughly. Like the fact that I knew Gazzy was innocent just by looking at his face when he was accused of the stink bomb, and that I could somehow see the hatred and annoyance Jeb's secretary felt towards me when I'd broken into his house, and even when I knew the history and origin of some of Gazzy's belongings when Fang, Iggy and I hung out at his room.*

Luckily, I haven't shown any signs of Gazzy's fire manipulation ability, though it was only a matter of time before an incident occurred.

The knowledge of having these powers, a replica of the flock's abilities, should've counted for something. I got what I wanted. Jeb told me almost everything I needed to know, and more. I should have even been content and relieved that the headaches and the colds finally make sense now, and that it wasn't because I was dying. But even now, even with the truth, I wasn't happy. And I don't think I'll ever be happy.

I sound like an ungrateful brat, and I hated it, but nothing could stop the weight on my chest that pressed down on me even more. There was nothing to feel smug about developing 11 other abilities. Sure, it sounded awesome, but when push came to shove it wasn't all that worth it. If it meant these side effects and the fact that I have to save the world soon then the whitecoats could just take it back and shove it. I may have had the advantage of knowing the future and planning ahead but it heightened my unease and made me fear my surroundings. Like I'll just suddenly shoot fireballs out of my hands or unconsciously shape-shift in public. I wanted it all gone.

These abilities had minds of their own, going off at the most random times, possessing me like I was just some rag doll and leaving behind their nasty side effects that left an even bigger lasting impression.

I felt _horrible._

Horrible for seeking answers from Jeb, for being so stupid not to have seen the signs, from the side effects that would seize me, and from finding out the truth about my mother. I felt horrible in every definition of the word. I epitomized it.

Yet no matter how bad I felt, no matter the problems and the downcast emotions that coursed through me, I only allowed myself three solid seconds. Three seconds of self-pity after finalizing my list of signs and sorting out my feelings before I exhaled a shuddering breath, heaved myself into a sitting position, and prepared myself for training.

Because when you have to save the world soon, there's no time to waste.

I was just about to head out the door, tennis shoes in hand so I could build up my stamina in our vast backyard, when I decided to change into a pair of jeans. It would make more sense to save the world in denims compared to the baggy sweats I was currently sporting, and I had to get used to the feel of it. Grabbing the nearest pair that rested on the back of my vanity chair, I nimbly changed into the faded pants and was just pulling up the zipper when it hit me. Or more appropriately, it shoved me down.

I fell on my knees with a crash and immediately put a hand to my mouth, preventing myself from puking. Swallowing the vomit rising up in my throat, I felt even more nauseated but I suppressed it and blinked back the burning tears. It became easier to control the reflex to gag, but it wasn't in any way pleasant.

The creeping pain began at my sinuses, the heat and the ache travelling its way to my brain and down my spine, paralyzing my entire body. Engulfing, drowning, burning me to the pit of my stomach. Because this happened so often, I knew what functioning body parts I was left to work with and I knew what to hold to keep from falling apart.

With a grunt that pushed the remainder of what used to be my breakfast all the way down, I used the hand covering my mouth to brush away the hot tears as my other arm wound its way around my stomach, covering the figurative hole in my center where a good part of the pain resided. There was no use in holding my head, because that never helped any, and it felt much too light and hot at the moment, as if a fire was burning away the remains of my brain.

A flickering moment of coherence presented itself and I used the opportune moment to stumble my way to my white desk, tripping over non-existent objects in the process, and back-hand an already opened package to the floor, losing my balance to come crashing on the ground next to it.

It was agonizing to rip my arm away from my stomach, even though I knew it never even helped with the pain, but I needed both my hands to clutch one of the plastic casings in the mini cardboard box. It took pressing my lips and curling my toes to steady my hands that were already uncapping the needle of the syringe, the barrel of the injection already pre-loaded with transparent purple liquid.

Sometime in the middle of the week, I'd received a package no bigger than a shoebox. After taking all the precautionary measures into even opening the box, I'd found five full syringes in plastic cases, brief but understandable instructions, and a short note from no one other than my 'daddy dearest', Jeb.

He said I should take a dose in the mornings whenever I felt most ill, and that the solution would help subdue the side effects. Now while I never fully trusted Jeb, I knew that he wouldn't be kidding about this of all things, considering the private conversation we shared because of the very same reason. He was a heartless bastard for what he'd done, but we both knew he wouldn't risk my life with sketchy drugs. I guess he really wanted to help, even though his kindness was 16 years too late.

I shook my right hand and positioned the injection in it, this grip steadier than the other, and held the sharp bevel of the needle against my most prominent vein on my left wrist before sticking it in.

Just as my door burst open.

I was too concentrated on inserting the needle into my skin that I didn't register the slam of my door, the perky voice of Nudge telling me to get ready for our morning run, or even the shouts and exclaims that followed. Nothing else mattered and nothing else existed for the fire that burned all over the surface of my flesh and inside my bones was my first priority. That is, until the needle pulled back out of my vein roughly, swiftly, and flew across the room as if by magic into Nudge's waiting hand. I crumpled face-down to my carpeted floor, muffling my groan from both the throbbing in my wrist, and the agony that spread throughout my entire body.

There was more talk around me but that was dull and muted in comparison to what was happening to me.

I lost it. I lost my only opening to administer the drug. The box of injections was in my line of sight, a blurry blob of brown through my tears, but my fingertips have frozen over with an indescribable prickling sensation that left them bent and stiff like claws.

In the farthest corners of my memory, I faintly pondered about the things Jeb told us last week. About my purpose, and about my powers. All of them – and not just the ones I've recently developed, but the ability I've had for a long while: Personal Biokinesis.** I didn't know how I had the mind to think about all of this, since my brain felt like it was long shattered into pieces against the walls of my skull, but I couldn't let that thought go. And as I lay on my side, curled and withered with my jaw and my eyes clenched tight, I prayed that hopefully, _maybe_ the knowledge of this ability would somehow help me through this. Maybe.

There were more spoken words surrounding me, some louder than others, emotions leaking into their statements at random. A boy telling another to carry me to my bed. The panicked voice of a child. Someone screaming for the help that no one could provide.

I'm guessing the function of my some of my nerve endings came back when I felt wiry arms grasp my shoulder, trying to get a good grip on my sweaty self. I also guess the function of some of my muscles came back to me too, when I decided to swipe at the person with my still claw-like fingers, trying to get them to back off. Despite my defense, I didn't stand a chance as the person lightly pushed away my interference and scooped me up into his arms bridal-style. Initially, the sensation of crawling on the surface of my skin multiplied tenfold, making me squirm in the person's arms and almost falling out of it. But surprisingly, it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would when I was gently laid on cool, fluffy sheets – my bed – and warm hands pushed away the disarrayed strands of hair off my face, the touch a bearable blaze instead of the pins and pricks I expected.

The voices were getting clearer, genders distinguishable. My joints buzzing with extinguishing pain, breath slowing, ache fading, and the feeling of control slowly seeping back into my toes and fingers. The moment I felt my hand ball into a fist, I forced my eyes open. This episode lasted far longer than the others - the most suffering I've felt in a while – so I had to get used to this if more ever occurred, and I couldn't waste any more time in weakness and suffering.

'_Get back up, Max,' _I told myself.

Sitting up was a bitch, and swinging my legs over the side of my bed was like it's lovechild, but I pushed it all down and saved everyone the entertainment of watching me wince or whimper. I took a silent breath and faced the flock, brushing away the person's – Fang's – assisting hand so that I wouldn't have to waste even more time tallying pity points. I already had to face the flock's questions, and that too wasted precious minutes.

Fang seemed to be on the same page as I was, not wasting any time staring at my expectant face. "Max, what the _fuck_ were you thinking? Just because your problems are weighing down on you, you can't just-"

"Fang, you don't even know what you're talking about," I spat back, stepping further away from him. He didn't have to finish because I already knew what he was gonna say. He thought I was taking drugs to help me forget my problems.

"I was there when Jeb broke the news, goddammit! But trying to get away from your reality isn't going to make your mission go away. You're supposed to save the world."

"Max, _please don't…_" Angel came forward and held onto my arm like a lifeline, one of her fingers aggravating the bruise where the needle came off. My first instinct was to comfort her back like I always did in the past, but her tone and insinuation meant that she too thought I was pushing back my responsibilities somehow, so I ripped my arm out of her grip.

Sure, I gave them a reason to worry about me. For the past few days, I began isolating myself again, only showing up for meals and training, but I had a lot on my plate. A lot to think about, a lot to find out, a lot to do. It wasn't so much as secretive, but I'd rather not drag down the rest of the flock with my presence of despondency and indifference.

However, they gave me a reason to keep my distance. Ever since we'd gone to Jeb for answers, the flock has been babying me, even with the smallest of things. Like a _child._ 'Do you wanna stay in bed for a little while longer?', 'Are you sure you should be doing that?', 'Don't overwork yourself, Max.' _It was driving me up the wall._ I haven't been a kid for a long time. I didn't need their help or assistance, especially since it added insult to injury from that time they'd all voted me out of the flock.

And now it was time for them to get out of my room.

"All of you, _out!_" I tried ushering them to my door, but they stood their ground.

"Max…" Gazzy broke off from his stance next to Iggy and paused at least a yard away, wary of my reaction. "Please don't let this be a repeat of that time in the beach."

Those were the last words I expected to hear. And I wanted to cry.

My mind was racing, flashing back to two years ago when I tried to saw out the microchip in my forearm with a broken seashell. The incident made the list of the things I most regret, because not only could I have killed myself but I was acting selfish, stupid and weak towards my flock. Whenever I think back to that moment I would feel nothing but embarrassment, just imagining what my family was seeing – their leader succumbing to such a low point in life with my tangled hair falling into my face as I cut into my arm, sitting around my own blood, just bringing the shell back and forth on my skin zealously like a madman.

But it _wasn't the same thing_, and I was so ashamed that they thought this way.

I was definite that I was never going to go back to that state. I thought the flock had faith in me too, that I would never just give up like that, but already they were judging and begging me to stop.

In a way, I couldn't blame them. They entered my room to the sight of something akin to the beach incident from two years ago. They must've seen me injecting the 'drug' into my system (even though I wasn't even able to thumb the plunger) and then proceed to writher in agony on the floor. And because I've been spending all my time in my bedroom, they must've assumed I've been wasting my life away as of late, due to my volcano of problems. It made sense. Any stranger would've thought the same thing if they walked in on that scene. The thing is, the flock weren't just a bunch of strangers. They were my _family._

Did they think I've been taking the likes of morphine or valium these last few days? That I've been quarantining myself in my bedroom to fall into the bliss and pleasure of a single injection without having to have an audience? That must explain why they're so angry and upset. But I have the license to feel the same way too.

I didn't have the luxury to waste away in leisure and vices, nor did I have the time. _Literally._ Did they think that low of me? And how had the tables turned, leaving me all flustered and uncomfortable when they were the ones who crossed me just weeks ago?

"Gazzy, it's not what you think," I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"Of course you'll say that. You're in denial of becoming an addict. But Max, we can help you-"

Fang should've seen it coming when I swiftly took a step towards him and slapped him across the face, hard.

"_How dare you,_" I growled, looking into the eyes of someone I felt I didn't even know anymore.

Fang just stood there, his face tilted on its side as I watched his jaw muscle twitch. I expected we'd go another round again but it seems the flock were tag-teaming as Iggy moved towards us then, grasping Fang's shoulder to keep him from doing anything stupid.

"Okay, so maybe that was a little out of line," I was exploding with protests. "But we're not going to sugar coat our words for you. If it's something this serious, you're going to need-"

I already knew what Iggy was going to say, and they've said enough words to hurt me, even though they just wanted to '_help_'. So I clamped my hands over my ears and groaned low in my throat, pushing past Fang and Angel to plop back-first onto my bed.

"Okay, _okay._ I don't expect you to be kind but just please _shut up._ You guys are blowing this way out of proportion when it's not even a big deal. Leave me be and go back to your nail painting, or your bomb making, or your leader planning," I spat, looking at my ceiling with my arms spread out now, clutching the soft fabric of my sheets. "You've given up on caring a long time ago so stop pretending like you give a shit now."

Not only were they giving me a headache (just when the pain was going away) but they were pushing me further off the deep end with their comments. I didn't want drama. I've had enough drama to last me 15 lifetimes. I'll admit, I like being cared for, but not like this. Not when they were speaking so condescendingly, or scolding me for the wrong reasons with such insensitivity. I guess this is what drug addicts must feel like, but I wasn't one of them and I didn't deserve to be treated so cruelly.

They were supposed to be of help, but they were only pushing our bond further apart. I was only just beginning to warm up to them again when something like this happens. And I didn't want to hate my family, but they were giving me enough reason to. The flock should just leave before they completely sever the bonds I had in my heart.

"_How could you say that?_ Of course we care! We'll never stop caring."

"Then how could _you_ say _that?_ How could any of you say that to me?" I retorted back to Angel, leaning up on my elbows to glare at her.

"Then what is it that you're keeping from us?" Iggy's voice rose in volume, making me widen my eyes. His voice was so gentle moments ago. "What did we just see? What the hell is that?" He pointed a slim pale finger to the direction of my desk, next to where Nudge was standing.

"I'll tell you what it is," I hissed, "It's none of your business."

"You damn well know it's-"

"_Oh Max…_" Nudge's pained feminine voice split through the air, making all of us turn towards her even though it was nowhere near the intensity and loudness Iggy's voice held. We paid attention to her no matter how faint her voice was, thinking she was somehow hurt, and by the look on her face it seems like she _was_ hurt. "I'm sorry," she said softly, all her emotions packed into those two words.

In her hands were the short letter Jeb wrote to me and the box containing the pain medication. She looked so afraid, breathing heavily like there wasn't enough air in the room, and she wouldn't take her wide eyes away from me, boring a hole into my core.

She read it.

All of it, probably even the instructions slipped into the box. From the way she was gripping the letter, her hand subconsciously fisting the paper, I could tell that she must've read my emotions from the box too. On my desk and on my stuff.

_Shit._

"Please just leave," I all but whispered, making my head fall back on the bed again and squeezing my eyes shut tight.

"I know you don't want them to, but they have to know," Nudge said as if from afar. "Guys, she hasn't taken any drugs. And by the looks of it, this was the first one." A second of silence. "And yeah, they are drugs, but not the kind you guys think she took. She _needs_ them." I heard a voice begin to speak, probably Iggy, but Nudge cut him off. "Jeb sent these last Tuesday for her side effects." And I was hoping she wouldn't say the word, but there was no stopping Nudge by the time she told them, "They're pain killers."

Another silence ensued, this time longer than the first. I could bet they were all trying to take in what Nudge said, digesting the information, wanting to take back their words, feeling horrible, regretting. By this point I should've felt smug and triumphant that they were so wrong about me, but I wasn't.

"Why didn't you just say so?" Gazzy was the first to speak, breaking the fragile stillness. He tried not to, he really did, but his voice couldn't help but shake of their own accord, betraying him. I stayed quiet.

See, it was easy to want to be strong, but proving it was another thing entirely.

I wanted to be strong. I wanted Angel to regret ever kicking me out of the flock, wanted to show them I could be offense and defense without any help, wanted everyone to see that I could still be Maximum Ride despite my side effects and abilities. I want to still be the butt-kicking, headstrong Maximum Ride I was.

But notice the past tense? I _was._

I didn't want anyone to think less of what I already was. It was embarrassing enough that I'd gone to Jeb for answers, proving that I wasn't smart enough to find them on my own, but I was just about ready to go die in a hole that the flock found out I wasn't strong enough to withstand the pain from the side effects, received help from Jeb, and actually _accepted_ the medicine and was about to take it. I was already steadily building up a good reputation ever since I came back to the flock but now it was in shambles.

To have to inject myself with a syringe, as the whitecoats have in my childhood, was a sad sight to see. I felt sorry for _myself_ when I was positioning the needle, knowing that I was giving in to what a whitecoat would do.

But I was drawing the line there. I didn't need any onlookers, and most definitely I didn't need the flock watching me. The flock, who once held so much respect for me. I wanted to salvage as much of that while I still can. My family knew about the side effects but that doesn't mean they had to know how much pain I was going through, enough to plunge a needle into my vein just to wean my suffering.

So I continued to stay quiet. I'm sure they all knew now; sometimes the silence is all you'll ever need to understand.

"Max, I'm _so_ sorry," Fang apologized, his voice dripping with sincerity when just moments ago, he'd called me an addict. I suppressed the urge to snort.

"Here, let me help you," I heard Nudge's voice next, and could hear it approaching, no doubt with the injection in her hand. That was when I sat up swiftly and dragged my body on the palms of my hands closer to my pillows, away from everyone else.

Them offering their help with injecting the drug seemed worse than them offering to help me get off drugs. At least there was no pity with the latter.

"I don't know guys. Aren't you afraid I might become an addict?" I scowled, wrapping my arms around my drawn-up knees to give off the impression that I wanted them out. Y'know, if my words weren't enough.

Iggy made a move towards my bed, his blind eyes full of guilt. "Max, we're sorry. We didn't know you were in so much _pa-_"

"Just get out," I told them all, looking away and towards my balcony doors so I wouldn't see all their remorse and pity and _ugh._ "Y'know, since I'm so high I might try to kill you with a seashell. Better run while you still can."

They all stayed quiet, but they didn't leave.

I didn't know what they were waiting for, but if it was for me to make a move, then the sudden idea that popped into my head seemed appropriate enough. To prove my point, I got up and maneuvered past the stricken flock. Once I was close to Nudge, I grabbed the paper and the cardboard box from her hand none too lightly, then came to kneel on the carpeted floor to pick up the two plastic cases of injections that fell out when I'd back-handed the box. Nudge attempted to help me (there was that word again), but I flicked off her hand as if she were diseased and cleaned up by myself. They were all probably watching me, but I made sure my back was towards them as I wiped away stray tears that welled up in my eyes. Oh jeez…

Once I was done, I made a show of throwing the box in the trash can by my desk before striding to my bedroom door and standing by as I held the door open by the knob, finally lifting my chin to face the flock and making sure my facial expression was clear as glass: _Get out._

One by one, all five of them shuffled out rather awkwardly, unsure whether they should try apologizing properly to me, or whether their fear overrode rationality. I waited until the last person was out, Fang, before I slammed the door and leaned on its surface with a huge sigh. I was pretty much holding my breath the entire time they were exiting.

When I felt the air calm again, I pushed aside training for later and opted to take another bath.

I knew I just took a shower, had nothing to be ashamed of, and didn't take a single drop of medication in me, and yet I've never felt so dirty in my life.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

_Conveniently enough, I was only two hallways away the second I heard their screams. More specifically Nudge's and Angel's screams._

_My reaction was instant. I began padding down the hall barefoot as fast as my feet could take me, light and swift with every turn. By the time I was about five long strides away from Angel's door – where the sounds seem to be coming from – a mix of both their cries resonated off the thick walls and into my ears. _

_I was out of my mind. _

_Growing up with Nudge and Angel, I've come to memorize their voices in my heart. They were my wake-up call, my encouragement, entertainment, my guidance, and at the end of the day, my lullaby. I could tell which belonged to who, even if they spoke simultaneously. But it didn't make sense that the incoherent sounds I was hearing now were coming from them. They rarely scream, and it was nearly mythical that they would cry._

_So if they'd done both in the last minute, then we were probably in a world of trouble._

_Without hesitance, I burst into Angel's bedroom, the interior designed similar to one of a ballet studio. Three out of the four walls were made of glass from floor to ceiling, and minimal furniture occupied the expanse of the room. My eyes darted frantically left and right, until my sight landed on two huddled figures on the floor by the powder pink vanity, the vanity's matching chair tipped on its side haphazardly._

"_Sweetie, what's the matter?" I immediately rushed to them and got on my knees, holding them both to me as best as I could as they continued to sob their little hearts out. _

"_Nudge?" I turned to the older of the two, gently sifting my fingers over her long curly hair swept over her shoulder so that it would fan out on her back again, hoping that she'd enough calmness in her to tell me what happened. It was no use to try with Angel since she'd already buried her face into my shoulder the moment I was close enough._

"Max…_" her voice was weak and shaky, and the incessant hiccupping didn't help any either. "We have them too. I was doing Angel's hair and we-we…" Nudge burst into another round of tears, her thin shoulders shaking as she kept trying to wipe them away, only for another round to come streaking down her cheeks._

_I wanted to make their tears stop. I wanted so badly to make them happy, because that's the way they should be. _

"_What do you mean?" I continued to question, though in the nicest way possible._

_I held her at arm's length now so I could look into her eyes, my free hand resting reassuringly on her tan arm. When she lifted her chin, she could barely breathe the words, "We got our expiration dates too." Her voice broke, just as my blood ran cold._

_This wasn't happening._

_With trembling fingers, I lightly shifted Nudge's shoulder so that the clear mocha skin of her upper back faced me, gathered her wild hair in my hand, and just about got the wind knocked out of me as I eyed the dark numbers at the nape of her neck._

05-96-01 – _etched on her skin and into my memory._

_I didn't have to check Angel to know that she had it too. My peripheral could barely make out the black smudge half concealed from the curtain of her blond braided hair. I tried telling myself that it was just dirt, but look where that got me the last time I thought the black ink on the back of my neck was from pen marks._

_Not allowing my panic to take over, I eased out of Angel's grasp and made Nudge take my spot. My nerves were going haywire but I tried my best to suppress the urge to run or cry. Nudge was watching me with wide, red-rimmed eyes and I couldn't let her know just how bad this situation was. She was in no way stupid, but the flock always relied on the fact that if I were okay then things mustn't be that bad yet._

"_Nudge," I told her, my voice surprisingly firm, "I need you to stay with Angel right now, okay? I'll be right back. Just stay here and protect each other."_

_I only realized how strange it was for me to ask them to protect one another the moment I stepped out of Angel's room and into the hall, as though a monster were out to get them, when I knew that an expiration date isn't something you can hide from. You can't prevent it. But I was hoping they would try anyway._

_My feet thumped even faster now on the marble floor as I ran in the opposite direction towards the other side of the second floor, where I knew all the boys' room were located. My movements were still light as ever, but it no longer had the grace I strangely possessed. I zigzagged and even came close to crashing against a corner wall in my haste to get to my best friend, Fang, who would know what to do in this situation. _

_Fang was the more logical one. The one who didn't let panic cloud his ability to come up with a Plan B. I was normally good with plans too, especially with my experience as leader, but I knew I wouldn't make any sense now. Nudge's and Angel's expiration dates hit me even harder because _I_ was the one destined to die young. It was only supposed to be me. _

_When his door finally came into view, I didn't bother knocking and just entered the room with a bang of his door. Poised on his bed, Fang was just typing away on his laptop with his back resting against the headboard. He'd looked up the moment I came crashing in, and I didn't waste any time on formalities or awkward stutters._

"Fang,_" I couldn't help the desperation in my voice, as though he somehow had the cure. "Nudge and Angel got their expiration dates."_

_And in the next second we found ourselves bolting down the hall into the next, my hand in his as we weaved through another set of halls to get to Iggy's room. Since the flock was nothing if not polite, we came into his room without stopping in our stride, Fang heading for Iggy while I made my way over to the Gasman._

_The two pyros were pretty much attached at the hip, so we didn't expect anything less. I only had a second to assess what they were up to – with Iggy's slender fingers tampering a device in his hands as Gazzy watched with interest by his side – but it was the least of my worries. When I finally reached the little blonde boy in question, his bright blue eyes looking up at me with curiosity, I wordlessly held his skull in the palm of my hands and tilted his head forward, swallowing back a shriek as I stared helplessly at the number _12-99-01 _on his neck's skin._

How had I not noticed this before? Did it only come today? Why was this happening? I had to be dreaming.

_In the next second, I looked up and into Fang's dark gaze. He was only a few feet away from me behind Iggy, who was complaining and asking what was going on. I prayed that Fang would shake his head, that he would tell me that Iggy was spared, but instead he nodded once. _

_And now Iggy days were numbered._

_I ended up in Fang's arms. I don't know if I'd stumbled my way to him, or if he was the one who went to me, but details paled in comparison to the situation we were faced with now. Almost all of us were going to die sooner, rather than later._

"_No, no! This can't be true! Fang, we're going to fix this; we _can't_ die. W-we'll figure something out. There's always something. I-I'll-"_

"_Shh…" Fang soothed me with his voice in only the way he could, stroking my hair down my back and leaving a trail of lingering heat where his palms were. "It's okay, Max. Everything's okay," he said with a tone so confident I almost believed him._

_With my lips pressing against the fabric of his shirt, I looked at our attached figure in the mirror behind Fang. The top of my head peaked out from the side of his shoulder, bloodshot brown eyes staring back at me._

"_Like I said before…" he continued. _

_And then I noticed something else… Right beneath his choppy black hair I'd cut short a few weeks ago._

_The numbers _09-93-02_._

"_You die when we die."_

_I finally let myself screamed._

"Shit!"

I bolted upright from my uncomfortable position on the couch, my whole body drenched in cold sweat that left a stain on the cushy material.

Out of habit, my gaze slid to the bedside clock across my room where the green numbers blinked 4:46pm on the LCD.

_Double shit!_ I slept the entire afternoon.

That thought quickly slipped my mind though, as the events of my nightmare replayed in my mind like a projected video. Normally, I would forget dreams the second I gain consciousness, but for some reason selected dreams – like this one in particular - stick itself onto my brain like glue. I can't forget the sobs of Nudge and Angel, the dark numbers that danced across my vision, and most importantly the words that Fang told me. It all seemed too real.

'_But no Max, it's not real.' _I chided myself.

Taking a deep breath, I got up and stretched to relieve myself of the soreness from the cramped couch. Feeling my muscles strain and my bones pop, I imagined myself shedding the coat of fear and crapiness I got from the dream to start anew. The moment I felt I could breathe easy, a livelier undertone in my step, I grabbed a snack from my mini fridge and started up the computer I barely use on my desk. As the PC whirled to life and the icons started appearing on the desk top, I searched for the Jeb phone until I found it randomly placed on the long-since-forsaken vanity and clicked the most recent message I received from – you guessed it – Jeb.

Call it what you want to but I'm not going to deny that yes, I am accepting help from Jeb. It's not because I finally decided to trust him, or even like him, but he was willingly giving me information, and I'm not complaining. Just last week, I'd asked him to give me answers and true enough, he was holding his side of the bargain. Apparently he thought the story-telling wasn't enough, and opted to give me access to all the Strohelm and Itex files in their database. And I mean _every. Single. File. _

Sure, the smart thing to do would be to reject them and sever any connection I had left with him, but the smarter thing was to suck up my pride and go along with it.

It was different accepting this, as compared to accepting the help the flock were offering me yesterday. Though I knew they were only looking out for me and have the best intentions at heart, their kind of aid stung. It was the kind given only because they felt sorry for me, and saw me as some kind of wounded puppy from a side street. Like I can't do mundane things on my own and need their assistance every waking hour just because of the side effects.

Jeb's kind of aid was different, though. It was help all the same, and still bruised up my pride, but I would allow it this time. He helped me because he _believed_ in me. It's silly for me to assume that he's playing good ol' dad all of a sudden, but whether or not that was true, I would use his help to my advantage anyway. Jeb could've stopped at his story last Sunday, but he'd sent the pain killers (even though I threw them away) and his company accounts even after that. I guess he wanted to help me succeed. Jeb didn't see me as someone who needed help because I was pitiful, but maybe because it was just the honorable thing for him to do – to support the destined savior of the world.

Now that my thoughts and my morals were all sorted out, I cracked my knuckles and started connecting the cables from the Jeb phone to the system unit of the computer. Because Jeb had given me his passwords as well as the passcodes to get into their database, I didn't have to hack or anything. I was a few short clicks away till I got to Strohelm's version of a homepage, which consisted of rows upon rows of categorized folders ranging from their budgeting down to their daily cafeteria menu.

I had everything at the tips of my fingers.

Taking a bite of out my granola bar with gusto, my eyes gleamed at the infinite possibilities. But first…

I was going to find a cure for expiration dates.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It's official.

_The Lord is testing me._

Snapping out of my chair with frustration, I slam dunked my ninth granola bar wrapper into my trash bin and huffed like a child, blowing wisps of my dark blond hair out of my face in the process.

I'd checked _everywhere._

Well okay, not _everywhere_, but I spend the last two hours searching for something I don't even know the name of.

I didn't expect the scientists to just name it 'expiration dates' and leave it out in the open; they must have a more formal name for it. But after the dozens and dozens of folders I've browsed through, having to destroy a few firewalls every now and then on some of the more encrypted files, my eyes have long since glazed over and my arms was just about ready to fall off.

I spent the remainder of my afternoon scanning at least 200 documents, but my hard work paled in comparison the moment I scroll down and it seems like I'll never stop scrolling, the names of the files tiny - so tiny that staring at them make my eyes cross.

It was like finding a piece of hay in a needle stack. And yes, I meant to say it like that because it was excruciating – the ache of not knowing burning in my stomach, as well as deathly _boring_ just reading about their scientific mambo jambo.

As I contemplated my next plan of action, my eyes couldn't help but drift over towards the glass panes of my balcony double doors, admiring the hues of orange, pink and purple as the sun made its slow descent to hide behind the forest of trees.

Then it came to me. That's what I needed: a break.

There was no arguing with that thought as my body went through the motions of slipping into a pair of jeans and lacing my sneakers, feeling my wings twitch and ruffle on my back as the excitement of finally being able to stretch them came down on me. Without skipping a beat, I'd thrust open the doors, leaped onto the wooden balcony railing in one go, and shot off into the sky as my wings started flapping in its natural rhythm.

I was on a high.

Though I have gone flying recently, when I met up with Mitzi and when I flew to Jeb's house just last week, nothing beats the sensation of just soaring through the air past the fluffy clouds in shades of yellow and pink, riding on an air current with the breeze cool on my skin. Not because I needed to get somewhere, or because I needed to meet somebody, but simply because I needed to fly for myself sometimes.

Inhaling the slightly damp, clean air from way up here, I cleared my thoughts. It was not the time to worry about my death, or my mission, or my family. Up here, where I was not bound to anything, not even gravity, I was only going to be me.

The view from here was spectacular. One of the things I loved about Greymoore was that it wasn't too urbanized with tall buildings, highways and pollution. There was a good amount of infrastructures such as shopping malls and companies, but overheard you could clearly see that there were more trees and greenery scattered almost everywhere. It was comforting to look at.

I spent the next few minutes slipping in and out of warp speed, trying to spot all the places I knew. I was taking in this bittersweet town from all the good and bad memories, and just when I'd spotted my old high school from its distinct maroon-painted roof, I was _so_ very fortunate enough to be graced by the presence of no one other than the little prick that resided in my head, the Voice.

'_Hello Maximum.'_

A shiver ran down my spine at its sudden appearance but it wasn't enough to make me fall out of the sky like it once did. Having dealt with the Voice for two years made me develop an immunity to its sneak attacks and overall bullshit.

'_Why hello to you too, Voice. How was your vacation? Meet any other lady voices so you can move out of my head?'_ I thought back. The Voice never had a distinct gender but I always assumed it was a boy; it reminded me too much of Jeb to take on any other form.

'_You should go tell your friends about your expiration date now._ Trust them.'

My reply was instant, simple. '_But I can't trust anyone._'

'_Maximum,_' For some reason, the Voice sounded almost smug. '_You never stopped trusting them._'

Okay, now this ticked me off. '_Oh, so now you're dictating what I should feel?_'

'_Tell them, Maximum,_' The Voice ignored my former comment. Did I expect anything less?'_Tell them while you still can. Your death will be more difficult to admit the closer it comes._'

'_Easy for you to say. You're just holing yourself up in my head when everything blows over,_' I shot back as I normally would. I tried to focus on the Voice's general message, to inform the flock of my most unfortunate 'condition', but red lights started to go off at the back of my mind. '_Your death will be more difficult to admit the closer it comes…' _How much longer did I have till I died? A month? A week?

'_But it doesn't have to,_' It said, like confessing the truth was all butterflies and rainbows. '_Gather them in your room. Explain it clearly. They will listen._'

'_Yeah, the last time that happened, they called me a drug addict. I wonder what they'll think of next!_'

Clearly, the Voice was annoyed with me when it didn't reply at once. Oh, if only it left me alone when it bothered the heck out of me… Crazy as I was, I wanted to continue my conversation with it. The Voice only ever talks to me when it's really important so I assumed it was enough to make headlines. '_Voice?_' I tried again. '_Hey umm…would you happen to know if there was a cure? For my expiration date, I mean?_'

To this day, I would never know if the split second buzzing in my ears was the beginning of a reply from the Voice or a muted warning right before I got stabbed in the forehead by an unseen force, disorienting me into a freefall.

…

Well, _shit._

These last few days I've been getting weak headaches and mini fevers. It was not something to panic about, especially now that I know these were due to the side effects of my abilities. They consisted of occasional dizziness, or the painful throbbing you get in the back of your eyes, but it was never something this big.

While those headaches and fevers were like little teasing children out to annoy me, this was like their obese mother trying to get revenge.

My joints didn't lock, which was a plus, but because my head felt like it was on fire, I couldn't seem to right myself to at least glide on a current. I was falling back-first, with my wings flapping pathetically beneath me, just flipping and twirling in mid-air.

Trying to get a hold of myself, I pushed the searing pain of the headache as best as I could to a small corner of my subconscious, making my safety and visibility my main goal. The pain was indescribable, but all things aside, I faced situations like this almost daily. It was frightening (I think anyone would be afraid to fall) but I was smart not to scream or overreact just yet. I knew that only made you fall faster.

As I tossed earthbound like a rag doll, I forced my eyes open with a grunt and attempted to turn on my back. My wings had other plans though, because suddenly all seven feet of the pair twisted painfully to the right by a huge gust of wind, and the imbalance of weight sent me heels over head faster to the ground at an angle now. A human projectile.

On my descent, I could see flashes of the world around me, blue in one second and green the next. Through bleary eyes, I could make out the copse of trees I was headed towards, a small body of water, and was that a trail I saw?

My panic multiplied tenfold when I realized just how close I was to the treetops. I wasn't initially too worried; I had hundreds of feet left before I brushed past the last layers of clouds. But then I realized too late that I'd taken so long on flipping in midair that I was now ninety, eighty, seventy feet away till impact. Never mind the fact that civilians could see a large falling figure. My anonymity was the least of my concern.

I couldn't believe I was falling. I, the girl with the wings, was falling from the sky. The irony was killing me, if my impending crash didn't do that first. This has happened before, getting a little out of balance, but I was always able to right myself and continue on unscathed. For some reason I couldn't support myself, couldn't seem to get any of this right. And this time, not even Fang could come and catch me.

In my most pathetic last attempt, I spun once more to get airborne, but I was thirty feet above the canopies now and there was no use. I only had enough time to cover my face with my arms before I got swallowed up by the green thicket headfirst, streamlining my way to the forest floor.

I've done this before. I've travelled through even the densest forests at immeasurable speeds trying to get away from flying Erasers. With my expertise, I tried to make myself more nimble to avoid injury, I _really_ did, but it seems every branch, twig, spike, and pointy leaf positioned themselves _exactly_ where they knew I was going to pass, making me scratch or slam into something every second. You'd think because of all the tree limbs I was hitting on my way down that I'd be able to grab onto something but it's like they were taunting me even more when they'd slip from my grasp.

Apparently Mother Nature was out to get me too. Probably in cahoots with my kind of 'Luck'.

These must've been mile-long trees, because I could swear that that fall felt like a millennium. I experienced the last of it all with a final slap of a skinny branch on my neck (more like a punch if you ask me) before I finally came to lie down on the soil-covered ground with a bang. Considering the past few incidences where I'd burned, broke, bruised and bloodied my wings, I felt sorry they had to take one for the team again.

I should've been dead, I think, as I contemplated my chances of surviving that fall from so high. But the first signs of suffering, as well as a wave of nausea, came down on me, and I knew I was far from it. The impact knocked the breath out of me, and all my bodily organs rattled beneath my bones. I had to wait a few seconds till everything stopped swaying and blurring, and then waited another few seconds in stillness to see if anything was broken.

The good news was that there was nothing broken, not even any of the tiny bones in my wings. With only a few minor cuts, scrapes, and dirt that marred my skin, I was far from dead.

The bad news was that I'd be, without a doubt, colored with bruises all over my body in every spectrum of the rainbow. To say I was sore was a massive understatement. The moment I sat up, ever muscle that was involved in lifting my torso screamed in protest, starting a riot under my skin. I had to stay like that, half up, for a full minute before I reluctantly forced my legs to move. Biting into my lip to keep from making a sound, I moved my legs beneath me until I was kneeling, with my limp filthy wings spread out behind me, all seven feet stretched out on either side of my aching body like a blanket.

I allowed myself to open my eyes before I brought myself to stand up, muscles tense for the crowning moment of pain. I'd kept them closed this whole time since it kept the tears at bay, and eased the agony just by a little bit. Blinking multiple times like I had something stuck in my eyes, the setting stopped swaying and disorienting figures came into focus as they adjusted to the lighting and the scene on front of me.

I was at a park.

Not quite in the middle of it, but by the few amount of people I could make out from behind a few thin trees, my landing spot was definitely close to some sort of public hang-out. Looking around to take in more details, I was more specifically close to one of the paved walkways, the kind where jogger made their runs, or nannies took a stroll with their children.

Only then did it hit me, and my eyes widened to the size of saucers.

_Oh God._ I have to get out of here. There was no telling how many people might've seen me fall from the sky, right at this exact spot, and I was just sitting here like an idiot. Onlookers might come to see what had happened, and I wasn't sure how fast and how far my bruised-up body could take me before they came.

Scrambling twice, I resorted to digging my finger deep into the soil for traction to lift my weight. I'd just lifted one knee and was about to push up into a stand when a voice called me, the voice that always called me in the middle of a crowded cafeteria, that always teased and joked and laughed when we were still friends. The last voice I wanted to hear.

"_Cam?_"

Pressing my outstretched wings closer to my crouched body on the muddy ground, never have I ever wished my wings would disappear more than in that moment.

"Hi Zach," I mumbled weakly.

* * *

**For those who probably want a legend of sorts…voila. (It's the Chapter – then the power Max mimicked)**

*_I pressed the heels of my palms into my eye sockets, remembering the obvious._

_What did I think was happening that time Iggy and I ran into Fang and his group of friends at the mall? Everyone was spouting out random thoughts, Fang called me by my real name as if I weren't even there, and Izzy pretty much announced to the whole world that she thought one of Fang's friends was cute. But apparently it was all just in my head. I was _reading their minds._ Why didn't I further question what had happened? _**(Chapter 6, Angel's mind-reading)**

_It was also just my luck that I'd gotten Izzy's secret admirer at first guess, even knowing his last name to my astonishment, but I was never lucky and I didn't even know what I was doing. The moment I grasped the note, light on my fingertips, his name was projected into my thoughts out of nowhere. Now that I ponder this, I didn't guess Mason Turner because I was getting better at teenage girl games, but because he wrote and held the note first and I knew this. His prints, and his identity, and his thoughts and feelings were embedded onto the love note, and I was dumb to have overlooked the fact that I've never even talked to the guy, much less formally meet him. _**(Chapter 10, Nudge's psychometry)**

_Another sign that was like a slap in my face was the day the flock and I skipped school to spend more time together. We were playing hide and seek, and I distinctly remember seeing the thoughts that were not mine, running and searching around the house while my physical body hid underneath the kitchen island, unmoving. I was the seeker, in Gazzy's mind, and this whole episode continued on its downward spiral when Gazzy found me in the kitchen and mistook me for Angel. I'm willing to bet this case remained on everyone's minds for days, but I was foolish not to press the issue. I didn't tell anyone that I was in Gazzy's mind, not even Fang, and I didn't worry enough why Gazzy saw me as little Angel instead of what I really looked like. _**(Chapter 22, Angel's mind-reading and shape-shifting)**

_And now it all made sense why the flock didn't notice or even see me that day in the entertainment room when they were arguing. They continued their conversation about a mission, and about me, while I stood still by the entrance just eavesdropping in 'plain sight'. I admitted it was weird; I knew then that they couldn't see me until I showed myself and spoke up against Angel, but I never came to the conclusion that I had developed Fang's power of invisibility. I passed it off as a coincidence, a mere stroke of luck, or even stupidity on the flock's part. _**(Chapter 30, Fang's invisibility)**

_More instances continued to flood my mind, recalling what Jeb had mentioned. I must've used Iggy's enhanced senses to better him during that mission in Salem, when I heard the Itex guards even before Iggy, and managed to successfully escape with the flock. _**(Chapter 7, Iggy's enhanced senses) **_I somehow knew every password and every code the moment I laid my fingers on Jeb's computer keyboard when I snuck into his office and stole some of his files. _**(Chapter 16, Nudge's psychometry) **_I healed so quickly - a span of only four days - from the parking lot incident that left me bloody, bruised and broken, when I knew that it should've taken me weeks to heal, or even more realistically kill me from the gravity of my gushing wounds and broken bones. _**(Chapter 35, Iggy's accelerated healing)**

_Looking back at it, it was a wonder how Gazzy's old school principal, the uptight Mr. Cater with a branch up his ass, easily let Gazzy off the hook without so much as a fight after I was able convince him some. Gazzy had allegedly defaced school property and yet there was no suspension, nor sanction, or even a day of detention. He believed my defense in seconds. _**(Chapter 9, Angel's mind-control) **_There was the time I'd thrown a knife at Fang with accuracy and precision, even though that wasn't in my list of expertise _**(Chapter 21, Nudge's metal manipulation)**_; and there was the other time I knew that Angel was having a nightmare, sharing her dream _**(Chapter 23, Angel's mind-reading)**_. I also knew that Nudge had gone through my room when I was still angry with the flock, the sense of her touch imprinted all over my things that pissed me even more during that time. _**(Chapter 31, Nudge's psychometry)**

_There were even the little things that I could've overlooked if I didn't sort my thoughts so thoroughly. Like the fact that I knew Gazzy was innocent just by looking at his face when he was accused of the stink bomb _**(Chapter 9, Angel's mind-reading)**_, and that I could somehow see the hatred and annoyance Jeb's secretary felt towards me when I'd broken into his house _**(Chapter 16, Angel's mind-reading)**_, and even when I knew the history and origin of some of Gazzy's belongings when Fang, Iggy and I hung out at his room _**(Chapter 20, Nudge's psychometry)**_._

**I'm sure there are more signs throughout the story**, but I'm so lazy to make a thorough sweep of all the chapters. In the event that any of you guys find something I failed to mention, just drop me a line and I'll be more than happy to edit this around. :)

****Personal Biokinesis:** Max's ability to control her bodily organs, or basically her body composition. Biokinesis in general is far more complex and badass, with the manipulation of your genetic make-up and even changing the (Congratulations! You've just read majority of my AN, which seems to go on for eons. To reward you for your patience, just type the words 'adjectively ravishing bandaids' in your review and I'll give you a sneak peek into the next chapter :D) composition of other people's bodies – that whole shebang - so I gave Max a limit, so to say, so that she's only able to control her 'inner' self, such as the beating of her heart, or the repair of her bones. But nothing like, making her skin as hard as steel, or reshaping her entire bone structure or something. :\

**Now you probably think the flock's being a pain in the ass, **but try to see it from their point of view too. Even we would probably offer help to someone who's as broken as Max, but she's too stubborn to realize that, and she feels ashamed considering how wimpy she's looked for the last two months.

**Also,** because Fang fully and _completely_ realized the gravity of Max's problems, _regardless_ of her morals, he believes that the weight of it all was enough to make her fall – and fall hard enough to take drugs (medical drugs as in morphine or valium as mentioned above, not like, LSD or shrooms or something). It seems unfathomable that Fang would think that if you reevaluate the whole thought process, especially since Fang is the one who knows her the most, but because _he_ is the one who knows her the most, he believes that was her boiling point (added to the fact that the beach incident scarred Fang and left a huge impression, he couldn't imagine anything less severe); people who care the most are the ones who tend to exaggerate. There's the saying, "The bigger they are, the harder they fall," and it fits the description.

**QUESTION OF THE CHAPTER: **What's your favorite song right now? (Just one please :D)

Right now, it's gotta be '**California Bound**' by Carolina Liar for me. It's kind of old, but I love these kinds of songs, especially the ones with catchy instrumentals; and I think the meaning's beautiful in a naïve sort of way. :)

**GOSH, THIS AN IS SO LONG AGAIN. I AM SOREE.**

Did any of you ever see one of the 'signs' and have it bother you for a really long time?

Do you think Max is being a total butthead right now?

Do you think the flock are being total buttheads right now?

Would you accept Jeb's help if you were in Max's position?

Did Max's dream thoroughly freak you out?

Do you think Max will ever find what she's looking for?

What do you think will happen to Max and Zach next?

**I'd love to know what you think **(or if any of you guys are still with me)**!**** :D**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	51. And The Truth Is

Oct. 1, 2012. Monday. (12:07am)

**Hey :) **I honestly don't know why I'm updating. Maybe it's because I'm feeling unusually generous…or just typically evil.

Many thanks to **ShortLittlePixie**, **BCK-forever**, **AnikaandAj**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **cat musketeer**, **fangsallmine1123**, **Raeofmydarkness**, **Angelfallen4**, **everlastingwolflove**, **springheeledjack**, **flytothemax97**, **boxtoplad999**, **maximumpotter101**, **mysterywriter94**, **xXimmortalXx**, **book phan44**, **kwong4668**, **Emma123133**, **SnowTime**, **SharpestSatire**, **darkgryffindor08 **and **Ladybug3264** for your wonderful reviews. I also value each and every favorite and subscription, and I'm still so glad you enjoy this story despite its long run.

Here's a shout out to **SilenceIsInfinite **for being my 500th review. That's just freakin' awesome.

And **heads-up**: I'll be posting a **collab twoshot story** with the lovely **americanbread** (author of He's Out of My League, How To Probably Get Some) by the end of October as an entry for **The Prompt**'s fourth challenge, a **Parallel Partnership. **Anybody can join! For more details on this prompt, check out my profile which will lead you to their community and the prompt's details. I hope you guys think of joining. :P

(P.S. I got the title of the chapter from the song** 'The Truth Is' by Go Radio**. While this chapter and the song have entirely different meanings, I highly encourage you check out that song anway. :P)

So, I may be four chapters late (Re: bottom AN from chapter 41) but here it is. :)

* * *

_Scrambling twice, I resorted to digging my finger deep into the soil for traction to lift my weight. I'd just lifted one knee and was about to push up into a stand when a voice called me, the voice that always called me in the middle of a crowded cafeteria, that always teased and joked and laughed when we were still friends. The last voice I wanted to hear. _

"Cam?_"_

_Pressing my outstretched wings closer to my crouched body on the muddy ground, never have I ever wished my wings would disappear more than in that moment._

"_Hi Zach," I mumbled weakly._

The next seconds were instantaneous, so quick and so precise that the adrenaline rushing through my veins drowned out the pain in my muscles and got me moving at lightning speed.

Zach Anderson took one look at my wings, his gaze lingering for half a second, before he made a run for it down the cemented path. But in unison, I was already moving before he even lifted a foot to make his getaway. In five steps, I'd slipped from in between two trees, leaped over a short hedge and spun into a high kick, my sneaker-clad foot connecting with the side of his head, resulting in his unconsciousness. Only when I'd landed in a defensive position did my actions really dawn on me.

Holy. _Shit._

With wide eyes, I did a once over on the situation again, glancing between a sprawled out Zach on the pavement, both paths of the walkway and the surrounding trees, and then back at myself with my wings still exposed and folded lightly along my back.

The best thing would've been to call the flock for back up, but I could only imagine their condescending looks and lectures once they find out about my carelessness. I hadn't talked with any of them since yesterday, spending all my meals and training on my own, so suddenly bringing this up was no good.

_Right._ So I had to fix this myself.

Running a hand through my hair, I got to work. The first thing I did was deftly removed Zach's jacket and slip it on myself to cover my wings. That took less than a minute before I was already searching his pockets for his cellphone and car keys. Three missed calls from 'Celina' made me presume he was going to meet up with her at the park, but all things considered, I could only shut off the device and proceed to haul his flaccid body off the ground. The cogs in my head spun as I contemplated my efforts at bringing him back to his car, bearing in mind the distance I had to cover. Dragging him was out of the question, so I did the only thing I could do. Shrugging on the hood of his jacket to conceal my long blonde hair and face, I shifted him onto my back and carried him piggyback style.

Thank the heavens that only a couple and two runners past me as I lugged this – _mind you_ – full-grown teenage boy across the park to get to his car. By the time I'd reached Zach's shiny navy blue sedan parked on the curb and successfully managed to get the both of us inside, I was so sure that if I'd unzipped his jacket, a flood of sweat would come pouring out in torrents.

I was definitely counting this as my training for the day.

Swiping the hood off my head to get cool, I allowed myself a few short minutes to breathe and think of my next steps. From the moment I'd knocked Zach out, I was only making stuff up as I went on, unsure of how I was going to right this mess somehow. I was responsible for hurting Zach so I should see his well-being and condition through to the end.

On the passenger seat next to me, Zach was slumped as if asleep, his head bent at a slightly awkward angle. I couldn't bear to look at him, even though he was an arm's length away, because the sight of his unknowing, friendly, _human_ face brought about guilt that ate at my crumbling heart. I was already at fault for Mitzi; I couldn't do this to Zach too.

But now he would know, and he would no longer be oblivious or naïve. Zach would no longer look friendly, because I know the truth would weather his grin into a straight set mouth.

Already it was picking away at his perfect little world.

My arm had a mind of its own as it outstretched towards him, hand extended, and my fingers brushed back his chocolate tufts of hair on his forehead to reveal a purpling bruise on his temple. A dark flower that blossomed to his eyebrow and cheekbone, where I'd hurt him.

His slight shift from my touch brought me back to reality and I pulled my hand away to set them both on the steering wheel. Right. It was only a matter of time before he woke up, and I needed to be prepared for when that happens. So in no time, I'd started the car and released the hand break, and we were on our way to Zach's home.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to the unconscious boy next to me without looking at him. "I'm sorry for this."

_I'm sorry for everything._

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I bet it looked like I was going to rape him or something.

Appropriately enough, Zach acted as though I _was_ going to take advantage of him the moment he woke up. I, for one, would never do that to someone (no matter how much I liked them), but I couldn't blame him either for panicking if I found myself gagged and bound by my wrists to the wooden grills of my headboard.

His reaction time was astounding, I'd give him that. The moment he opened his eyes, it took him only a few seconds to assess the situation. The next thing I knew, he was thrashing around on his bed and shrieking into the cloth bound to his mouth, desperately calling for help.

He'd made eye contact with me for a fraction of a moment, but even that didn't matter as he continued on with his wriggling, somehow managing to get himself tangled in his bedsheets. It was egotistical of me to think that Zach would even bother about me, given the fact that he was currently tied up like a human trafficked victim and the way I treated him at Mitzi's funeral, but he'd looked at me, _really_ looked at me for a second there…

And then he continued on with his twisting and his yelling.

He didn't care whether or not I was his savior or his captor. He didn't care for me at _all._

"Zach," I whispered, guilt-stricken for doing this to him, for what I was about to do to him. I clenched my fist at my sides and put on a mask of determination, steadying myself. Continuing the repetition of his name, Zach seemed deaf to all my attempts; so when I'd had enough of sounding like a broken record, I strode forward until I was standing right on front of him and held his clammy face in between the palms of my hands, shouting into his face, "Zach, _listen to me!_"

Bright green eyes met mine. Because they were so clear and so familiar, I could easily read the emotions and thoughts going through his mind – the fear, the confusion, and the anger. Nudge's ability of psychometry didn't help my case either as everything intensified tenfold from his touch, causing me to stumble away from him.

He'd finally stopped screaming and squirming on his bed, his struggle causing his clothes to wrinkle and his hair to stick in every which way, coming to just stare intently at me. There was six seconds of silence as I took a deep breath to prepare myself, tucking my hair behind my ears. I approached Zach with caution this time, stopping by the foot of his bed and resting my knees on his mattress to conceal their shaking.

"I know I'm the last person you want to see, and I'm probably the last person you're going to believe, but you have to _listen_ to me, okay?" I said calmly, hoping the tone of my voice would convince him.

I saw the way his eyes darted to the door, to me, then at his cordless telephone on his bedside, then back to me. Of course he didn't know who I really was, but did he really think I would make this so easy?

"Goddamit Zach; don't even bother," I sighed in exasperation. "I've got your cellphone, locked your windows and doors, disconnected your landline and disabled your internet connection. I'll have you know that I'm very skilled when it comes to knots, and I'm positive you've seen me fight. Now you can either end up passed out face down with a concussion, or you can focus and listen to me."

That wasn't the most eloquent way of putting it, but I needed Zach to cooperate. By the look on his face, I could tell he was thoroughly freaked out, but it was best to kill his hopes of escaping now so he could quit struggling and save himself the rope burn. I could've been a little more patient with him, especially because I probably couldn't understand a fourth of what he was going through right now, but I haven't been frolicking in a field of daisies either and yesterday's incident with the flock was still fresh in my mind. Just one more little thing that could set me off and I swear I'd lose it.

Luckily, and like the boy I knew him for, he listened. Zach was trying to kill me with his eyes, I could see that, but he sat rigid and straight on his bed. He was breathing deeply, nervously, but he forced himself to stay brave, looking expectantly back at me.

"Okay," I smoothed back my hair again, attempting to get the layers out of my face as I thought of where I should begin. His bright green eyes followed my figure as I paced the length of his room; when I finally conjured up a format to my story, I grabbed his desk chair and brought it a few feet away from his bed, twirling it before I slumped onto it and leaned my crossed arms on the back of the chair, legs on either side of the seat.

"The first thing you should know is that my name isn't Cam. It was an alias made by my biological father for our temporary stay in Greymoore. My real name is Maximum Ride."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

By the time I finished, the sun had already set. It was past six in the evening from what I could tell from in between Zach's window shutters, and I was all talked out after an hour of explaining everything. And when I say everything, I mean _everything_.

I didn't go into details such as the time the flock split up due to my half-brother, or when we'd gone on a mission to Antarctica, but I told him about what I really was and what I was made for. Not like the half-assed 'step-siblings' alibi I gave to Mitzi that got her killed.

I'd only known Zach for a mere six months, not even for an entire school year, but I couldn't put another one of my friends in danger because of me. Mitzi had died because she told somebody about my secret, about a brother and a sister who were dating and in love. Because her story matched mine and Fang's descriptions, she took the consequences of my mistake. If only I'd told her the whole truth and made her understand how important it was to keep it a secret, maybe she wouldn't have told it to some random guy at the bar. Maybe she wouldn't have misunderstood. Maybe she'd still be alive.

I wanted, _needed_ Zach to keep my secret. If I didn't tell him now, didn't make him understand just how grave this all was, he could wind up telling the wrong people about my wings and end up like Mitzi.

There was no way around this mess. I had to tell Zach the truth.

Throughout the entirety of my explanation, Zach kept an indiscernible expression on his face. He'd reacted to the sight of my wings, and raised his eyebrows at the mention of my 'destiny' to save the world, but he took in everything else with a blank stare. Almost too stoic to be normal considering my tirade on human-lupine hybrids and a brief run-through on our abilities.

It scared me, because Zach took the cake for most expressive among all my friends, my family included. He would always send me funny faces in the middle of class from across the room just to get me to laugh, and his ever changing expressions whenever he'd tell us stories were what made him Zach Anderson.

But this wasn't the case now. I guess the past few weeks really aged him, including the truth that I was confessing right now.

After I'd concluded my story, a piercing silence swept the room. Added to the fact that he was unnerving me with his heavy stare, I did the only thing I could think to do and got up from the chair to approach Zach, stopping right on front of him.

"I'm going to untie this now, alright?" I indicated to the cloth tied around his mouth. He nodded. "And you're not going to scream or yell for help because I'm not going to hurt you. If you call for attention, then I'll hurt you. Are we clear?" He nodded again, his eyes boring into mine. "And when I untie this, you're going to calmly comment or ask questions about what I'd just told you, okay?" And he nodded once more.

Well it wasn't like I was giving him a choice.

Deftly, I unknotted the cloth at the back of his head and took a step back to appraise him. The first thing he did was lick his lips and stretch his mouth, an amusing exercise that lasted for a few minutes. Finally, I observed him swallow once before he lifted his head to look back at me.

My muscles tensed in an instant. I hated that Zach would keep making eye contact, looking me right in the eyes because the lightness of his irises reminded me too much of Mitzi's. It was almost enough to burn a hole right through me. Acid roiled in the pit of my stomach, and I readied myself for whatever was about to come out of his mouth. Would he scream for help? That would be the natural thing to do. I could knock him out if ever, but then we'd have to go through this agai-

"You're shitting me, right?" Zach said sarcastically, shooting me an annoyed look.

I wanted to laugh – at the simplicity of his first few words, at his awkward position on the bed, at his tone of voice that he didn't quite believe me. That was the last thing I expected to hear from him, but at least it was better than calling for the police or his parents. That would majorly suck.

"I only wish, Zach," I responded, my words infused with a bit of snark.

"Wait, wait. So let me get this straight. You're telling me that you're real name's Max. Maximum Ride," he conirmed, his voice serious.

"Yes."

"A-and that you, Nick and James, and all your other siblings are part of this group called the Flock."

"Mhmm."

"And that you all fly."

"Yeah."

"And that the reason you were all created was to save the world."

"Well technically speaking that's my job, but the flock's there to help me," I clarified.

Zach gave me a long look, his face a mix of disbelief and irritation. Then - "Cam, do I look like I was born yesterday?" he spat.

I approached him once more and held onto his shoulders. "Zach, don't-"

"No, don't touch me." He jerked from beneath my grasp, shaking until my hands let go. "Look, you've had your fun. Now please, drop the act. What's the real reason why you're here?"

Oh God, Zach was in _denial_.

Here I was, declaring my entire life's story to him, drowning in my internal struggle with the decision, aware of the precautions of putting my family at risk, and he thought this was all some sick _joke_? Zach saw my wings – both at the park and just a few minutes ago. How could he take this as some prank?

"I'm here because I knocked you out the moment you saw my wings in the park. Even you saw that part. You _know_ what happened. Why won't you believe me?" I asked, trying to keep the hysteria from rising.

Zach gave me another look, as though I were an idiot. "How can I? Do you hear yourself? You're being ridiculous!"

"And you're being pig-headed! Just stop to consider this for a moment, will you?" I all but shouted.

"No, I won't, because it's impossible," he snapped, and for the first time Zach actually looked and sounded like a total douche bag. "I've taken advanced classes in all the science subjects offered and I'm positive that breeding animals and humans just isn't done."

Well if he was going to play the smart card… "Then those advanced classes aren't advanced enough because I'm friggin' living proof of hybrid engineering! Of course you wouldn't know about it, but that doesn't mean scientists aren't doing it behind closed doors. If they can freakin' clone sheep, then genetically engineering human embryo is just simple to them as snapping their goddamn fingers!"

Zach sighed, and if his hands were untied I imagined he'd be pinching the bridge of his nose about now. "I'm serious, Cam. Stop fooling around already. You're freaking me out, and it's not funny anymore."

His voice was deadly stern, another side of Zach I've never seen, but I wasn't backing down. He just _had_ to believe me. "But I'm not joking! Are you not seeing _this?_"

Just then, I spread my wings to their full length, 14 feet across with the tips bent inwards due to the small confines of Zach's bedroom. White with brown speckles occupied the expanse and I watched with satisfaction as Zach stumbled back in shock and tried to move away from me as best as he could, crawling on his knees on his bed.

"O-okay, Cam. Just calm down," he attempted to placate me, the binds on his wrists irritating the flesh from all his panic. I felt sorry for scaring him, but I knew he still didn't believe me; he called me Cam. And I needed him to fully and completely understand.

"My name's Max, and no, I will not calm down. Not until you believe me."

Turning around, I walked _through_ his desk chair like it was as natural as breathing and scanned the clutter of junk piled on his desk. When I found what I was looking for, I extended my arm out and a silver Zippo flew into my hand. Making sure that Zach was still watching me, I popped the top off the lighter and flicked the thumbwheel smoothly, producing a small tongue or fire. Despite not having any knowledge on fire manipulation prior to this day, I didn't hesitate to tilt the lighter into my free hand, pouring the flame onto my open palm and playing with the tiny baseball-sized fireball in my hand like it was no big deal.

I lifted my gaze from the flame to his face. "Now do you see?"

Zach was a pretty strong-willed guy. After all that I've told him this afternoon, after all that I've shown him, I'm surprised he hasn't passed out or gone into cardiac arrest yet. He was visibly taking deep breaths, his broad chest rising and falling rapidly, and his eyes were the size of plates, but he was taking it all relatively well. He nodded in answer, his eyes still wide and bulging.

"And now do you believe?" Another nod on his part.

"And now will you listen?" And another.

"Good." Waving my hand with the flick of my wrist, the tiny ball of fire vanished and I slumped into the desk chair I'd previously passed through, leaning forward with my elbows on my knees as I pressed the heels of my hands on my closed eyes.

"Look…I'm sorry I scared you. I can't imagine what you're going through right now; and I know that wasn't the best way to tell you, but I'm running out of time and I really needed you to believe me, and the only way I knew you would was if you saw it with your own eyes."

Now did Zach believe me? It took him only three tries to convince him, faster than I'd expected, but I did speed things up a bit with my small display. The things that I could do were out of the norm but does he think this is just some magic show with special effects? What if it wasn't enough? My abilities were the last in my bag of tricks and if he didn't believe me now, I didn't know what else to do…

The only sound in the room was Zach's audible breathing for what felt like ages. Sometime in between I'd begun clenching my jaw and pressing my palms further into my eye sockets, afraid of what Zach would say. I started trying to think up more plans to sway his mind when his sudden words broke the silence. "H-how the _fuck_ is this even possible?"

I let out a huge sigh of relief I didn't know I was holding and took my face away from my hands, trying to blink back the blurriness while I explained.

"I told you, there's a company called Strohelm that was responsible for genetically engineering me and my family with bird genes. It sounds like something from out of a lame TV show, I know, but it's the truth. In fact, Strohelm and Itex are probably not the only companies that deal with illegal studies without the government's knowledge."

"But most animal hybrids that scientists have tried to make always fail. I've heard; Biotech is my elective. A human being would be-"

"Difficult, but again, not impossible. Our species still fall under the category of mammals so it isn't all that different. There even are more experiments like me – part human, that is. And my family and I are some of the few successful ones."

"But your parents-"

"Are the ones responsible for doing this to me. They were both scientists working at Strohelm. As for Nick and James, they were stolen from their parents at birth."

He looked at his rumpled sheets for a second or two, trying to organize his jumbled thoughts. "This can't be true." Zach shook his head vigorously, his brown hair wiping back and forth as if to rid the horrible thought. "How does a place even exist?"

I almost snorted aloud from his naiveté, but sadness overpowered my arrogance.

Not only was I putting his life in danger, but I was also destroying his constructed image of a perfectly happy world. "I know it sounds cliché, but evil really does exist, Zach. There are really some people out there who are making little children run through mazes, or take tests, or fight against animals."

You would have to be really observant to notice the way Zach's chin jutted out a bit at my statement. "But you're just a kid," he scoffed.

"A kid who can fly thousands of feet in the air, take on a crowd of adults, and turn invisible. A kid who has to save the world," I reminded him, hoping that didn't sound self-absorbed. "Zach, it's what I was made for. I told you there was evil in this world, and that's something I have to fight."

"But you're just a kid," he repeated, his voice cracking. Now his emerald green eyes were filled with sorrow, reminding me of a child himself. Oh if only he knew about my expiration date, it would break his little heart in two.

"A kid with a family who's going to back me up," I smiled weakly at him. An urge to stroke his hair like I used to do to Gazzy suddenly seized me, but I fought it back. "I'm not going into battle alone. You just continue to worry about Mr. Smith's wrath if you pass your homework late another time."

He didn't laugh. Only looked back down at his bed, his eyes shifting time to time as he thought in silence. I'm positive he finally accepted what I was telling him; it was swallowing it that might take even longer.

"Look," I'd begun to reach out, but then hesitantly pulled back my arm. "You can ask me anything. It would help. I mean, the last thing I'd want to do is to confuse or frustrate you."

"Why did you and your family come here?" he questioned after a beat of stillness. He sounded defeated, tired. And I knew he was asking because life would've been much simpler without me.

"My family and I needed another place to lay low. We used to live in a safe house in Oklahoma for about four months, but things got complicated," In other words, two certain pyros caused a fire and blew our cover. "And we moved here. We didn't mean to cause so much trouble. I'm not one for drama either. I wanted to live as normal as possible, but reality keeps-"

"So was I a cover-up?" Zach cut me off, his head still bowed. His voice still held its child-like sadness, but I recognized another emotion too. He was also angry. "Were Mitzi, Bris, Izzy and I just a bunch of strangers you hung out with to pass as normal?"

I was guilty enough, and now he was beating me about this? "Zach, of course not," I made my voice as sincere as possible. "The four of you were really, truly and honestly my friends. The only human friends I've made in two years."

Digressing, I would've said 16 years but then I faintly remembered my time spent in Virginia, with a friendly brunette and the nice boy who kissed me.

"And why should I believe you?" he quickly retorted, bringing me back to the present.

"If there's one thing I wouldn't lie about, it's our friendship. It seems that way, that I used you guys as a cover-up, but I wouldn't need to hang out with you guys on the weekends or plan the outings if I were lying. I didn't need to help you with your homework, or be there for all your lacrosse games, or listen to you rant about your favorite TV shows. I didn't have to go to Mitzi's wake. And I didn't have to explain my life's story to you to save you. But I did."

At my words, Zach finally lifted his head to look at me again. The fog has cleared; and if everything I've been saying for the past hour seemed sketchy and unsure, then it was my answer right then that made everything true to him.

"Then the things you said at the wake-"

"-were meant to keep you away," I admitted, embarrassed. I couldn't look him in the eye as I told him, pretending to be more interested with my dirty fingernails. "Zach, you're too good of a friend to me… You always collect my homework and notes in my absence, always try to make things better. But my real life doesn't concern you, and I don't want it to… I needed you to stop caring, so I purposely hurt you."

"So what happens now?" '_To you and me,'_ Was left unsaid. Sighing, I made myself smile to dissipate the previous weight of our conversation.

"Now, I'm going to go back home and rest, because lugging your dead weight took its toll on my back and I feel like I'm developing osteoporosis." That made him smile a little. "And you're going to go back to being Zach Anderson, lacrosse player with top notch grades and the wit to match." As he looked skyward, imagining that future, I whispered to myself, "The Zach Anderson before I came along."

There was no point in explaining my future plans. It basically entailed the destiny I told him about – saving the world. Maybe not tomorrow or next week, but I was going to do it, and soon.

"Cam, I mean Max…why didn't you tell me this before?" He genuinely looked perplexed. It was sort of a dumb question; why would I tell him my real identity if my family and I were trying to stay incognito? But I answered it anyway, trying not to let my irritation show.

"Because I _can't_," I almost sounded desperate. "Even if I wanted to I couldn't. So many people want me and my family. The bad guys, heck, even the good guys. But we don't want to be owned; we just want to be _normal._ And if I told you about the wings, and about our powers, I would be anything but normal in your eyes. You would tell someone-"

"I would've kept your secret, Max."

"You say that now, but inevitably you're going to want to tell someone. Bris, or your older brother Marco, maybe. And even if you tell them to keep it a secret, they're going to tell their family and friends and it's just going to spread like wildfire. We've been there and done that. This town can't know who we are. At least until we leave."

"Then why did you tell me all this now?" his voice held something I couldn't put my finger on.

"Because I had no choice." Zach rolled his eyes at this. "I'm serious! I could've left you unconscious on the sidewalk, but I felt I owed you an explanation."

It was then that I got up and untied his binds from the headboard, removing the knots carefully. He faintly flinched when I'd approached him but didn't struggle or make things difficult otherwise. Once the cloth fell off, I gave him space as Zach rubbed his raw wrists on his lap. He was much calmer now but I didn't completely let my guard down, and if he unexpectedly decided to lash at me, I was ready to hold him down via force field.

"Max, why should I keep your secret?" This question was conclusive, the last thing he wanted to know. Checking my watch, I realized it was almost eight. He didn't stop me as I started to back away towards his window, my feet light and soundless with every step.

Did Zach really believe the past two hours of everything I've said? The ridiculously impossible truth? His behavior told me yes, but I couldn't be too sure if Zach was above gossiping, considering the way I treated him.

Maybe he'll never believe me, but I had to hope that my story scared him enough to keep his mouth shut. I could easily read his mind to see what he was thinking, but for him to trust me, I had to trust him too.

"You may not be my friend, Zach, but I'll always be yours. _Please._ Please keep this a secret. If not for my sake then for yours." And if anyone knew me, they'd know I never say 'please.'

With that, I jumped out of his open window, leaving him for the second time with no proper goodbyes.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

My stomach was begging to be fed by the time I got to the house, stumbling through the back door and making my way across the kitchen. I'd just finished chugging down a glass of OJ and was rummaging through the fridge for more substantial food when a loud crash reverberated, making me bonk my head on one of the fridge's shelves.

Now more concerned about one of my mom's vases than my hunger, I slowly trudged to where the noise had come from, the nearest living room, and had just put my interrogation face on when the screaming started. Specifically two feminine sounding shrieks – Nudge and Angel. And when there are screams involved, this meant business.

My night was just about to get ten times worse.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It was a quiet evening, but it was always quiet whenever Nudge and Angel were involved.

How their bond had so easily deteriorated in a month was a mystery. Growing up, they were partners. If there was a Max and Fang, an Iggy and Gazzy, then there was a Nudge and Angel. Forget being BBFs, they were _sisters_. The two girls knew each other inside out, and sometimes Nudge knew things about Angel that the latter didn't even realize, and vice versa. Max may have been their older sister and mother, but if there was one person they could depend on, it was each other.

But now, they were like strangers; co-existent, but neither one acknowledging the presence of the other. No more slumber parties or late night chats or hair braiding sessions – none of that. The only time they see one another was during training and meal times, or perhaps on the occasion of coinciding in the same area.

Like they were now, as they both sat down on opposite ends of the room. Nudge first plopped down with a sigh on the long couch, picking up the remote to the television and turning it on, just as Angel settled down on the love seat perpendicular to the TV.

Nothing but the drone of the television filled the room as Nudge changed the channels. It was a routine of hers, to go through all 126 options and memorizing the stations of the ones she wanted to watch before deciding on the one she found most interesting. But by the time she'd reached the 42nd station, Angel began to get impatient.

Almost everything Nudge did annoyed her, but that was always true with the person you dislike. She just wanted to rest and watch some senseless television show after the day's events, but Nudge was taking forever to just choose one. Not only that, but all the other small details, like the fact that Nudge always messes up the hand towels after wiping her hands, or the way she shakes her leg whenever she spaces out. Just _everything._

Particularly also due to the fact that out of the entire flock, it was Nudge who held the biggest grudge against her. She would know; she'd read Nudge's mind. But Angel never did anything wrong; Nudge just didn't like to listen to her instructions. The fact that Nudge was five years older never left her mind, but Nudge had to respect Angel too. Angel was the leader of the flock now, and she was going to scold anyone who ever stepped out of line. That was what Max always did; and if Nudge breaks her rules, then Nudge had a lecture coming to her.

"Oh, go back two channels. I love that show," Angel suddenly spoke above the silence, sitting up straighter on her seat. But Nudge chose to pay no attention to her, her brown eyes flashing on the little girl for a moment before she went back to channel surfing.

"Hold on. I just wanna check the rest first…" her neutral voice trailed off, sounding civil when she wanted nothing more than to snidely tell Angel 'no'.

Nudge was pretty much the nicest person out of the entire flock, but even her kindness can only extend so far. Especially with Angel.

Nudge was already being nice by ignoring her. If she spoke her thoughts freely, she might just make the little girl cry.

Angel was only the leader because no one else would dare take Max's place. They initially volunteered Fang to take on the role until Max was ready, but Angel quickly jumped at the chance and made herself the boss. Despite how wrong it all was, Nudge didn't want to fight her; but just because she let Angel be, didn't mean that she would follow everything Angel said. Nudge would train in the gym for herself, and she did what she had to this afternoon for Max.

Angel was bossy and demanding, wanting everything done her way; at least Max compromised with the flock sometimes, or tried to appeal to everyone's wants when she was the leader. That was the main reason why they grew apart in the first place – because Angel turned into a completely different person the moment she took the crown. A dictator. And if Angel wanted respect, she'd have to earn it first.

Nudge continued to ascend TV stations, but Angel disrupted the peace when she'd snootily told her, "I don't think there'd be anything else nice that's on. Go back to the travel show!" sounding like a brat.

Still, Nudge didn't want to argue with her, choosing to pretend like she heard nothing and went on manipulating the channels with the remote.

"Hello! Didn't you hear me? Go back to 45," Angel insisted some more, turning in her seat to face Nudge for the first time.

The elder girl still chose to ignore her. She didn't need this crap. She already had enough of it this afternoon. All Nudge wanted was to rest and forget about today.

"_Nudge!_" Angel tried again, but still no response. Nudge manned the remote with half-lidded eyes, deaf to Angel's pleas.

Groaning, the little girl got up herself and changed the channel manually through the side panel of the TV.

"Hey! You can't just do that," Nudge reprimanded her for being rude, switching the channel back to 78.

"But I wanna watch the travel show." Angel was obstinate.

"Well I'm channel surfing so too bad."

Unperturbed, Angel changed it back to 45 and looked over her shoulder at Nudge with defiance.

"_Hey!_" Nudge turned it back. "Stop that," she said, and this time she sounded serious.

Angel made a face. "Or what? You're gonna call Max?"

"I just might," replied Nudge, narrowing her eyes. Any second now, she was going to lose it…

In the corner of the room by the desk, Fang paused in his typing. He finally took notice of their argument, told them to stop, then resumed his blogging on the laptop. It was quickly becoming a natural sight to see them fight so he didn't take this one too seriously. They'd end up at a retort stalemate and stalk off angrily elsewhere. They always do.

With the disagreement extinguished by Fang, Nudge plopped back down on the leather couch and picked up the remote again, when Angel pressed a few buttons on the TV, changed it back to channel 45, and happily skipped back to the loveseat.

Nudge's eye twitched. "Really? Is that how it is?" she spat at Angel, trying to look her in the eye. Angel didn't back down as she met Nudge's gaze, both glaring at the other the way they'd learned how to glare by watching Max. Without breaking eye contact, Nudge changed the channel once more.

"Don't even think about it," Nudge warned. She'd taken enough crap from the 'leader' today and she wasn't subjected to anymore. In turn, Angel rolled her eyes at Nudge's statement and got up to change the channels.

"You don't own this TV," Angel spat.

"And neither do you! Out of all the places in the house, among the dozens of rooms to choose from, you decide to hang out here when there are a million other places with television set such as, I dunno, _your room?_" Nudge countered. Remote abandoned, she stood up from her seat and stood tall, trying to intimidate Angel.

"It's a free country, Nudge. I'm allowed to hang out wherever I want."

"Yeah, that's fine by me, but I came here first and I got dibs on the remote. I respect you and your stupid cartoons when you've got the remote in the morning, now you respect my decisions."

Angel squared her jaw. Nudge was talking about _respect?_ Someone needed to remind her where her place was. "Well _I'm_ the leader and ultimately you have to respect _my_ decision."

That did it for Nudge.

"Are you _really_ gonna play that card?" Nudge snapped back almost immediately, utterly astounded that Angel had the audacity to threaten her with that. "Well fine. You know what, Ange? You may be the self-proclaimed flock leader; good for you. But let me tell you something, once the missions are done and once training is over, you're _nothing._"

And that did it for Angel as she went on offense and attacked.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It was absolute chaos.

Hard telling what really happened, since it was all so simultaneous, but the aftermath sobered the situation with clarity and somehow I was able to piece the rest of the answers all together when it was over.

The moment I entered the living room, there was no time to stop and ask what had happened. My eyes observed everything in a split second – the way Angel's eyes glinted with something else, Gazzy's momentum, and the position of Iggy's arm that indicated his slight relaxation.

You could tell Angel and Nudge were about to go at it. Or maybe they already had.

The huge flat screen TV that used to be suspended was now leaning against the wall, its screen smashed into ruins with the frame cracked. Straight ahead, Nudge and Angel were both being restrained by Fang and Iggy respectively. Nudge had calmed somewhat since Fang only had a tight grip on her arm, whereas Iggy had a red-faced Angel around the waist, refraining her from attacking.

At first, I assumed they'd already fought one another from their grungy clothes and bruises, but Fang, Iggy and Gazzy had them too so I had to guess it was from training. Directly beside Nudge was Gazzy, his posture tense and alert.

And after I took this all in in that short split second, that's when all the action really begun.

Angel and Nudge were bad-mouthing one another. I couldn't remember the words – everything was happening so quickly – but I can recall Angel screaming, with Nudge throwing back her insults with nastier comebacks. Iggy must've figured he had Angel right where he wanted her, but one more retaliation from Nudge sent her lunging, breaking free from Iggy's arms.

Gazzy reacted instantly, throwing himself in front of Angel's course to protect Nudge, but only I'd seen the crazed look in Angel's eyes and the befuddling fact that she didn't raise her arms to strike.

And that's where I came in.

The first sound was about to escape Gazzy's lips, a boyish scream, but was suddenly cut off when I'd reached the mess. Once I was directly in front of Angel, I didn't hesitate to slap her hard across her face, hard enough for her to fall down sideways on the wooden floor with a thud.

Like in every movie or TV show, that moment of impact echoed throughout the entire expanse of the room, the only sound I could hear for the longest time. It was enough to make everyone shut up and stare, and even I had no words to say – not even an apology.

Slowly, Angel picked herself back up until she was on her hands and knees. She didn't raise her head right away, making her blonde curls cover her face from the embarrassment, but eventually her anger took over and she mustered enough courage to look over her shoulder and directly into my eyes.

She didn't have to say anything. Even if she tried to suppress it, the clear question of '_Why?_' was seen across her face, written in her bright blue eyes. It was accompanied by her pale scrunched up eyebrows, livid and not sad, and I figured then that I was right not to say sorry.

I thrust out my hand to her. "I know what you were planning to do, Angel. You had it coming so don't act so surprised."

"But you _hurt_ me, Max," Angel sounded genuinely wounded. In all my life as the parent head I've never physically abused the flock as punishment. I would give lectures and timeouts but to touch a hair on their heads was beneath me.

It was true; a mother would never hurt her child, it was unspeakable, but in these past few days Angel was anything but like a daughter to me.

"'Cause you were planning to hurt Nudge, and ended up hurting your brother. Do you even understand the gravity of what you just did?" And even then the weight of the situation was still dawning on me, that a seven year old could do such a thing. "You inflicted _mental_ pain on Gazzy. So if you're waiting to hear an apology, the only sorry should be coming from you."

With a huff, Angel got to her feet without my help and scowled at me, too proud to admit that she was wrong. "You don't even know what happened, so stop acting so self-righteous."

"Regardless of the matter, you're not allowed to hurt the five of us." I indicate the people in the room, including Ella, who'd just entered after hearing the fuss. They were all rigid in their places, smart enough not to interrupt my dispute with Angel. "I don't give a damn about your petty issues. You're supposed to protect your flock, _leader_," I made sure that hit home, watching her face twist with anger. "What possessed you to attempt to do such a thing, huh?"

I'd said just the right words. She wanted to defend herself, sucking in a breath through her teeth as she tried to think of a reply, but I spoke the truth – that she was just about to hurt one of her own – and no matter how hard she tried, that could never be vindicated. Just as she was about to turn and storm off, I quickly grabbed her arm and spun her until she was facing me. Angel wasn't getting away that easily.

"Hey, I'm not yet fini-"

She tugged her arm out of my grasp and started screaming. "Stop treating me like a child, Max! I'm seven years old!"

"I'll stop treating you like a child when you stop acting like one."

"It was just a little disagreement so don't lecture me!"

"Little disagreement…? Angel, the goddamn TV is broken! What the hell did you guys do in here?" This wasn't meant to be a big deal, but the fight was becoming more than just Angel and Nudge's little tiff. I had unsettled feeling with her too, and the more we fought, the more my emotions bled into my tone and words.

"It doesn't concern you. Look, I had everything under control until you came along." She was standing strong and maintaining hostile eye contact now, acting like a true grown-up. But I knew better – because if she were really grown-up, she'd just acknowledge her fault and not let it fester like this.

"Do you hear yourself? _Everything under control?_ If I hadn't intervened we'd have Gazzy rolling on the ground in pain and Nudge trying to rip your head in half!" I spat, "What is _wrong _with you? What? Have you been listening to satanic propaganda that you turned out this way? Because if fear and suffering is what you call control, then I'd happily lend you a dictionary, sweetie."

"_Shut. Up._" I was pulling on her last nerve. Angel closed her eyes with irritation, hissing, "I can handle it myself!"

But I couldn't help it. I continued to provoke her, giving her a sermon for all the asinine things she's done. Someone needed to tell her, and I've had enough of standing in the sidelines while she abused her power. "Yeah, but can you handle your flock? So you fought with Nudge, but you can't make her follow you by inflicting pain or threatening her. Same goes for the rest of us. Just because you're powerful, it doesn't mean that you have all the power.

"I don't want anything like this to ever happen again." I didn't wait for her answer. Angel's mistake was clear, and so was my message. I may not have been the flock leader, but if there was one person who could handle Angel, it was me.

I was then going to ask Fang what had happened, planning to talk to him somewhere more private, but I hadn't even fully swiveled around yet when Angel found her voice, filled with annoyance.

"There you go again, Max, always meddling with other people's business and trying to make it all better," she sounded almost insane, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "Of course you're the center of attention! Why would anyone think to get in your way?"

Everyone stopped what they were doing – Iggy and Gazzy pausing in their tread to go back where they'd come from, Ella's arm going stiff as she assessed if Nudge was okay, Fang stopping right where he was a few feet behind me. I turned back to face Angel.

"What are you talking about? When has this been about me?" I questioned. If anything, Angel might've just been redirecting everyone's attention so we could forget about her hurting Gazzy and Nudge.

She snorted. "Don't act so surprised. It's always been about you, Max, and it always will be! I get that you're important for the sake of the human race. You're supposed to save the world. But you know what? Not everything revolves around you. So just leave me alone and stop trying to get in my way." Her last sentence came out as I growl, and I knew from the sudden development of the conversation that it was far from over.

My eyes narrowed. "I hate to break it to you, Ange, but you'll always be my business. We're," I gestured around the room again. "A family. And forgive me for embarrassing you on front of _your _flock but _you're_ the one who started this mess. _I'm_ just trying to pick up the pieces."

"I could've done it on my own! Look at you! Playing God-"

"Says the crazy chick who tried manipulating her brother's mind."

"You're just trying to get everyone to leave me," she accused, breathing deeply. "Trying to get everyone on your side."

"_Because you're making it so easy for everyone to hate you!_" I pointed out, my voice rising. Those words spilled out of my mouth without permission, but Angel was really testing my patience. I practically raised the kid and she's never acted like this. "I'm not asking for people to choose sides. I just want you to think and start acting like a real leader."

"Well you know what _I_ want? I want you out of this flock right now. Live in this house for all I care, but you're flying solo."

It was harsh, but I didn't expect anything less. "Oh wow, Angel. Cry me a fucking river," I mocked, sarcasm dripping from my voice. "You think I've been oblivious to your devious thoughts the moment I had my first brain attack? I've known all along and frankly, it doesn't affect me anymore." I was so tired from all her bullshit, waving away her insults. "Go lead your flock while I sit back and watch you crash and burn. Have fun in your stupid little beach clean-ups and let me know when you finally accomplish something worthwhile."

Someone gasped a little ways to my left, probably Nudge, and even Fang tugged on my arm, but I shrugged him off easily. This was between me and Angel.

I know I was cruel, but I wasn't about to lose to her a second time. She already stole my flock from me. There was no way in hell that I would allow her to make me feel worse about myself, playing with my emotions.

This day _sucked_. And that was an understatement.

My research on Strohelm and Itex was fruitless, I fell out of the sky, and had to admit the truth to Zach and risk getting him in danger. Not to mention I haven't eaten dinner yet. How was I even stuck in this position, with some little kid berating me about being selfish? How did it come to this?

"_I hate you,_" Angel mumbled, her eyes brimming with tears. Those three words were like a dart to the heart, hitting right smack in the center, but I acted blasé and rolled my eyes.

"Get in line, buddy. There are two companies and a truck load of people already out to get me."

"No," she shook her head slowly, making the tears streak down her cheeks. "I _really_ hate you. You're a _bitch!_" she screamed.

"And you're a narcissistic witch that just has to ruin everything!"

She couldn't have just been happy.

Angel focused on all the things she was missing in life instead of counting her blessings.

She was able to get away from the School. She had a family that loved and took care of her. She had food, shelter, clothing – all that she needed. But she was never satisfied with just that.

She wanted to be the best – the leader. Angel had to have power and authority, even if that meant forcing her flock to follow, destroying her former life when everything was good.

She just didn't know when to stop.

And because of what I'd just said, because she couldn't stand the truth of how everything fell apart, she wasn't going to stop.

"_I'm_ ruining everything?" her bright blue eyes flashed and she barked out a cold laugh. "Look at yourself! Fainting, vomiting, coughing all the time. You're weakness is bringing the whole team down! We're only as good as our weakest link and right now you're endangering all of us because you can't handle the side effects of your abilities."

Fang stepped forward until he was a few paces beside me, trying to stare the little girl down. "Angel, that's _enough-_"

"Is it? Because I've had enough of her." She pointed at me, addressing Fang. Then without waiting for a response she turned to face me again, her eyes wide with insanity. "I'm sick of you. Sick and tired of you patronizing me. I can see it in your eyes, the way that you compare and judge me for my decisions. I'm trying the best I can-"

"But apparently your best wasn't good enough," I defended myself, trying to keep my voice strong as I repeated the exact words she'd told me when she took over. A thin layer of sweat was starting to form on my forehead and my heart was smashing hard against my ribcage with every beat but I tried not to let it show. From Angel's wide eyes and chilling laugh, who knew what she had up her sleeve.

The girl in question took a deep breath, blinking a few times until she focused her gaze back to me.

Then, "Max," her flat voice made me clench my fists at my sides. "We don't need you anymore."

My limbs almost ceased to keep me upright, though I'm sure my heart had plummeted into the pits of my stomach.

Angel really meant it.

Initially, I wanted her to see reason, to think about her actions when she almost badly hurt Nudge and Gazzy. I only wanted her to make sound decisions but in truth, I could've worded my lecture better. I was mad at her for a number of reasons, but the last thing she needed to hear was that she wasn't good enough. Especially since it was coming from me, the former leader, I'd hurt her in a way that no one else could – making her feel worthless and incompetent.

And I guess she was going to even out the playing field, telling me that I was useless.

"Thing would have been better off without you. You should've stayed gone that time you ran away and we shouldn't have tried to find you."

"Angel, _shut up!_" Iggy hissed from a few feet away. But she continued on her rant, her eyes stabbing my innermost thoughts, penetrating my defenses.

"Your job is to save the world so go do that. You have our powers, and you're old enough on your own anyway. You don't need us, and we can live without you."

I felt it again. Just like the time they'd kicked me out. Head throbbing, throat closing, hands shaking, blooding rushing, world falling apart.

"You're useless in this flock. Not only do you slow us down but you attract danger and drama that we don't need!"

"_Angel…_" I whispered her name, but there was no stopping her.

"So just leave us be and stop getting in the way! The only thing you've done is bring misery and I've had enough of that to last me five lifetimes. You're the only one that can make me feel like crap and I want you _gone!_"

"_Well then you've got your wish because I'm dying anyway!"_ I yelled the words I've been keeping for months, unable to hold it in any longer.

Maybe now Angel will be happy.

* * *

**Peace out.**

.: Tiffany :.


	52. Looking for the Found

Oct. 17, 2012. Wednesday. (11:20pm)

**Don't come bursting through my house with your pistols and machetes just yet!**

Anyway.

Thanks to **Eurwen de Vrill**, **mysterywriter94**, **maximumpotter101**, **ShortLittlePixie**, **Pheonixa.k.a ShadowFee**, **BlackVenom**, **cat musketeer**, **fangsallmine1123**, **DancingintheRayne**, **Ladybug3264**, **Iced-Tea-XD**, **yufsdhuvvf**, **Fireflies371**, **boxtoplad999**, **flytothemax97** and **kwong4668 **for all the reviews, the flattering death threats, and the hilarious reactions to that last chapter. Haha!

**Insert:** I normally name my chapters in advanced in my story folder. I'm not sure if you've noticed that all the chapter titles obscurely relate to the story, of if you even notice them at all, but I seriously cannot remember why I named this 'Looking for the Found'. :\ Any ideas?

**Now take the plunge, guys!**

* * *

The succeeding seconds of silence were deafening.

I could hear myself – with the blooding rushing in my ears, my heart pounding rapidly to an uneven beat, and every intake of breath wracking all the nerves in my body. I was paralyzed where I stood, unmoving as my flesh blazed with a torrent of warmth, spanning every inch of my skin. The heat made me break out into a sweat in a matter of seconds, a fine layer of water pasting my shirt to my back, my hair to my neck where my expiration date was tattooed.

This wasn't how it was supposed to be.

I'd imagined gathering my family in the entertainment room after dinner, when the atmosphere was pleasant and everyone was happily satiated. We would all sit down in a huddle, just like we did when I would tell them bedtime stories at night, and I would confess the story of my impending death. There would be gasps and exclamations all around, more so from the girls, but after a long round of questions they would all try convince me that everything was going to be okay, even though I knew in my heart that it wasn't. That was what was supposed to happen.

_Not this._ I was not prepared for something like this.

The backs of my eyes began to sting as I glanced at each member of the flock, all five of them surrounding me at various points in the living room. Even Ella was present, standing by the doorway with her hands clasped over her open mouth. There was shock and disbelief written on all their faces, and yet nobody made a sound.

They were all just looking at me; I was the main attraction to this circus. The browns and the blues and the blacks of their irises all melded into one and it felt as if their stare was killing me. As if I wasn't already dying.

It seemed like forever as I waited for someone to speak up, but the flock could only stand and stare with identical expressions of horror. I'll admit that it actually scared me. They looked like they'd just witnessed an accident and didn't know how to help. Like they were looking at a dead body from a casualty.

No, none of them were asking questions or consoling me. No one.

It was then that not only couldn't I hear, but I couldn't _see. _Without my permission, my eyes started to brim with tears, distorting my vision with smeared figures of the furniture and flock.

There was no way that I could face them now. How could I when I'd accidentally blurted out the truth and started tearing up in front of them? This wasn't a question of strength anymore. I'd long since lost that when the flock barged in on me taking meds. No, this was about dignity. The last of my dignity. And I was going to save the remaining scraps that I had left before I was left with nothing.

I couldn't help it. I took two retreating steps to the doorway. Unlike the last time, however, I hadn't imparted them with any lasting words before I did what I was notorious for.

I ran.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

A three second headstart was all I needed to gain speed and run through the hallways of this house, easily slipping in to my ability to move lightning fast. The gears in my head turned just as quick as I headed straight to the entertainment room, bolted across the expanse and crashed through the sliding glass doors that lead to the garden, intent solely on escaping.

I knew it was snowing, from the cascading dots of everlasting white that touched every inch of the forest, but I was focused more on my getaway as I took two pounding steps on the thick ground till I was flying. Trying to fly away from all my disbelief, panic, fear.

But it was hard to get away from something inside of you.

My emotions were eating me alive – raging and roiling down my gut. My physical body was fine, a few tiny cuts from the glass doors I burst through, but inside I was torn and bloody. This was a whole new kind of pain, something I've never felt before. A pain that surpassed all the experimentations I've gone through, the broken bones and the big ugly wounds. Far worse than the time I figured Jeb was a traitor, when Fang and the boys left, and even when the flock kicked me out.

It was bad enough to feel unwanted, but at least you still had a purpose. Even if I wasn't the leader anymore, they would probably need my speed or my strategic planning in one way or another. I still meant something, even if they didn't want whatever that something was.

But now I was just useless. _No use._ Not for anything – not even for back-up or the distraction. Not even the bait, for crying out loud. All my life I'd always put myself on a pedestal, but maybe I was just deluding myself into thinking I was something more.

I shouldn't have thought so highly if I knew that meant a longer fall to the ground, because it was so much harder to cope with the onslaught of feelings that blinded me alongside my tears.

In fact, I lost every other sense left in me. As I flew thought the forest that surrounded our property, clad in nothing but a cotton shirt and denim jeans, I barely registered the frigid air that slapped my flesh and the chill that seeped into the fabric of my clothes. I didn't hear myself crying since the wind rushing by my ears drowned out every other noise, and no salt water flowed down my face as the tears froze into sheets of ice on my bare cheeks.

My current state should've made navigating the forest difficult, but my quick reflexes maneuvered me throughout the maze-like copse easily. Some trees were feet apart, and their tall black barks were distinguishable against the white setting of snow. My mind was stuck on my worth, but I would occasionally pay enough attention to swerve and zigzag away from oncoming tree trunks. I was still aware of my need to get as far away from the safe house as possible. Away from the flock.

It was a reflex, to charge off when I didn't know how to control the situation. I couldn't help but panic if things didn't go my way. I was the leader, the head of the family for so long that going back to that state of unknowing and fear, the same feelings I felt when I was being experimented on in the School, was unacceptable.

Running away sounded blissfully sweet and simple. I'd done it before and I could take care of myself. More than anything else, I wouldn't have to worry about ever being hurt or betrayed ever again.

But I couldn't do it, not even for myself. I was delusional. What would I do then, if I did leave and hunker down somewhere across the country? Even if the flock wouldn't come after me, my expiration date would and it was only a matter of time before it took me for good.

And yet, what was I still doing, zooming through the dead forest in the middle of the night?

How did this all start anyway? Would we still be the happy family I imagined if I told them sooner? Would I still be inadequate in their eyes despite the knowledge of my death?

I was going to tell the flock. I _really_ was. There was no way around it even if I wanted to keep it from them. The truth was going to come out eventually but God, I wasn't ready to face it now. I didn't have time to get my emotions in check, or prepare a speech for them.

For the past few weeks, I barely gave a thought to my expiration date. It seemed like an illusion, a dream – and if I didn't acknowledge its existence, maybe then it would cease to exist. Just a horrible nightmare, and I would wake up in the morning and tell the flock all about it. But as my numbered days go by, the truth started to creep into my mind like a disease and I find myself thinking of being six feet under, of breathing and hearing and seeing one last time before it all fades to black and the curtains close with finality.

How much longer did I have? Another month? Weeks? _Days?_

I needed more time.

A few more days to get them to understand how I feel, to see me for who I was while I was still living in their image, alive and without the knowledge of my expiration date.

I needed them to _care._

It sounds selfish, to want so much attention. Who was I to ask for it anyway? Everybody was fighting their own battles so what made me so special from the rest? I was pampered; accustomed to having others around me. I was used to the idea of the flock being there for me unconditionally, stuck in the past of how we used to be.

But things have changed.

I was scared of their reaction, or worse, a lack thereof. Just scared, _terrified_ of what they would say. What they wouldn't say. A jumble of voices crowded my mind, confusing me as I tried to match their expressions. They were shocked, that was a given, but no one made a move to talk or even ask me anything. Faces were closing in on me, and I didn't want to wait and see if one of them would turn away with apathy. I'd rather leave their reactions to my imagination.

I'd like to imagine that things didn't turn out this way.

At this point, I'd almost collided into a thin forked branch if I hadn't slowed down. The strong twigs tugged at my shirt, leaving bloody jagged scratches on my sides, but I persevered. My breath was short and all my muscles were cramping from the chill, but it didn't matter much because flying helps me think and there was so much I had to sort out.

There was Angel.

I didn't know what relationship I had with her, or if I even still had one with her at all. I'd been in her position too, in the past, wherever matters with Jeb were concerned. For a moment I almost said to myself that she couldn't hate me, especially not since I raised her, but Jeb was my father figure as a child and I can't stand him now. Surely our case wasn't the same thing, but I can't help thinking that I must've done something so unforgivably wrong.

I spoke in anger, but it was nothing short of the truth. Whether it be Gazzy or Iggy, I wouldn't hesitate to reprimand them if they'd done something wrong. Same goes for Angel. She was going to _hurt_ Gazzy and Nudge and I wasn't going to stand by and watch it happen.

But was what Angel said true, too? Was I really not needed by them anymore?

It would be cool if I could say I didn't need them, but since we're being honest I did. I needed the flock in my life.

I knew how to build a shelter, gather food and defend myself. I was equipped with 16 abilities, not to mention wings, and intelligence and strength to match. I could survive without them. But as cheesy as it sounds, it didn't mean I couldn't live without them.

Maybe they could live without me.

They were strong; there was no doubt about it. Whereas I'm not as strong as I make myself out to be. They could build a shelter, gather food and defend themselves. More importantly, they had each other; they didn't need a dying girl with problematic powers.

So despite what all the scientists say - how I was important, the best, the _maximum_ – I didn't mean a thing to the people who mattered most. They say I'm important for greater things, but I was lesser in the minds of who _I_ deemed important.

A chocked sob echoed throughout the still, dark forest, and it took me a second to realize that it came from my lips. In an attempt to prevent any unwanted attention, I stuffed my fist into my mouth, biting hard on the knuckles. My shoulders were shaking uncontrollably, making my whole body convulse as I dipped and weaved from in between the black trees.

By this point, I had long since lost control of my senses. Occasionally I would speed up at random spurts, then go back to flapping drunkenly throughout the dense forest. My entire body was numb and painful, and I was so utterly tired to the core.

I could make out the trees through my tears, tall black needles set against the white backdrop, but consumed with the thought of being useless, of Angel being right, of my family not needing me anymore had me momentarily paralyzed that I crashed headlong into a thick, damp branch that sent me descending to the icy solid forest floor. Instinctively, my hands shot out in the hopes of latching onto something, anything, but instead landed on my back on a branch 40 feet from the ground.

Taking in my surroundings, apparently I hadn't even passed the forest in our backyard yet. I wasn't going as fast as I thought I was going.

I didn't even know I was pathetically hugging the bark of the tree I was perched on until the tiny prickles of splinters registered in my mind. There was not enough time in the world to catch my breath as I tried my best to flap my wings, but my muscles were not cooperating as I stayed rooted in place to the branch.

I needed to put more distance between me and the flock, to focus on flying and thinking about my next move rather than having to stay put and feel sorry for myself. Already I could feel my mind pulsating with thoughts, confirming the things that I've been trying to run away from. And when that started, I began hyperventilating as my hands shook. Digging my nails into the rough wood of the tree only made my nails throb and bleed, so I shifted and drew my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs, fingers clawing into my upperarms instead. It was less painful.

Now I was left with just my thoughts, and it scared me in a way not even death could.

I was so scared of being alone that I wanted to scream. I wanted so badly to scream and cry for help. Never have I ever felt this hopeless and frightened, but I knew I couldn't make a sound. The flock should've came and found me, but even then I wouldn't know what to do or say. Would they help me? Would they care?

Before I even knew what I was doing, I was already sinking my teeth into my forearm, biting into my flesh with all that I had left. The muffled yelp couldn't be helped but at least I couldn't scream. At least I could distract myself with this pain.

_Besides, Angel was lying anyway. I shouldn't believe her. She was just trying to upset me because I'd insulted her abilities. The flock is still my family, and no matter the rough patches we've faced, we'll always need and love each other._

_And even if they all left, there was still that one constant in my life: Fang. I'd still have Fang._

…_or was he going to leave me too?_

My tears were streaming right into the wounds as I bit harder, feeling my skin break as my teeth finally penetrated the first layer of flesh. The back of my mouth was raw from holding back screams, but I still held on, trying to focus more on the buzzing sting on my arm.

_What was worse? Being unloved or dying? Because they awfully felt like the same thing. Was there even a point to living if no one loved you? Did you even still exist if no one thought of you?_

Now the blood was flowing down my throat, and I slightly gagged on the bitter taste of metal.

_Even if I did find the cure, was there even a point in trying to save myself?_

I felt like I was choking. Or maybe I really was since I couldn't breathe through my nose and my arm made it difficult for me to inhale through my mouth. Whatever the case, my teeth didn't relinquish its hold in my arm since it felt like the only thing that was anchoring me to reality.

There was a flash of white and dark blue and the next thing I know, I'm falling once more, sucking in a dry bloody breath as my jaw unclenched from my forearm. I was flailing my limbs, almost in slow motion, but clearly I wasn't slow enough as the snow white ground rushed up and plunged me into absolute nothing.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It was one of those moments when Iggy was able to see.

Thanks to the stark white background of the fallen snow that went on for yards and yards around him, he could see the pitch black sky as it blended in with the high tree branches above. Their bodies of charcoal bark were somewhat evenly spread out in the forest, and from what he's observed, there was no other living thing in the vicinity besides himself and Max.

As Iggy was gasping for breath on his back on the hard-packed snow, he continually blinked his milky blue eyes, disbelieving that he could actually see the things around him for the first time in two years. It snowed in Greymoore – snowed a lot, actually – that white seemed to be their default background for months on end. The interruptions of infrastructures and moving vehicles in the city however, made it difficult for Iggy to even make out their shape.

Now, he could definitely see the clothes on his body and make out the silhouette of his fingers in front of him. He definitely saw Max lying on the ground a few feet away from him.

And suddenly he wished he'd be swallowed by the darkness again.

Despite the throbbing in his wings and back, Iggy scrambled to his feet and was instantly at Max's side. He ignored the aching of his ribs as his long fingers examined Max's damaged body with gentle urgency, his touch skimming for broken bones or serious cuts.

His eyesight wasn't perfect. The edges of Max's shirt looked hazy, and patches of her dark blond hair turned sepia in his vision, but the crimson-stained snow surrounding Max undeniably came from her. At first he was internally panicking, thinking that all the blood was his fault when he'd accidentally crashed into her in his search, but when Iggy delicately turned her over to face him, he found the culprit.

With shaking fingers, he dialed Fang and left a missed call – the flock's signal in case any of them found Max. The first thing he should've done was attend to her wound and carry her back into the safety of their home, but he couldn't help it. He needed to make sure.

Sliding one arm beneath Max's shoulders, Iggy hefted her up into a slight sitting position so that her wings weren't being crushed. With the same carefulness that he would use when handling the bombs he would create, he lightly swept Max's wavy hair over one shoulder, took a deep breath, and glanced at the back of her neck, Iggy's heart dropping at the sight of bold black digits against her pale skin.

A new kind of fear swept over Iggy as he exhaled, trying to suppress the growing hollowness in the pit of his stomach. He wanted a lot of things – wanted to check the back of Max's neck over and over until he would no longer see a tattoo, wanted to shake Max conscious so that she could tell him this was all just a joke, he wanted to wake up from this horrible nightmare of losing his sister.

Instead, he could only scoop Max's flaccid body in his strong arms, tucking her injured limb into his side, and take off in the direction of their home, where the flock was sure to be waiting.

She was heavier, head lolling against his shoulder with her legs swaying like lead as they flew, but he was unaware of all the variables, the biting chill and the heaviness in his heart, as Iggy flapped long and hard to bring her back.

It didn't take long before he was close enough to see a few backyard lights; with the help of his eyesight, it made flying much more efficient and agile. From afar, he saw five shadowy figures huddled on the wide tiled porch after the expansive backyard, but the moment the entire house came into focus, Iggy lost his vision again and relied on his other senses to guide him on his way back.

He hadn't even gotten ten feet to the steps before they were all bombarding him with questions and exclamations, crowding around him as he purposefully made his way through the house to get to the stairs.

"Iggy, where'd you find her?"

"What happened?"

"Is she okay?"

But Iggy just continued to stride quickly up the stairs in silent determination, navigating the halls robotically as he was already thinking of his next move. The flock kept pace with him all the way to Max's room, all of them growing silent when they figured he wasn't going to give anything away. Kicking the door open, he went straight for her bed and laid her down softly on the covers, moving her wings so that they extended on either side of her body. Some of the others probably haven't made sense of the dark red that painted Max's mouth until Iggy heard a collective gasp the moment he turned over her injured arm. It didn't take long for him to study the gravity of the wound, pressing and prodding the gash to see just how big and deep it ran.

"Ella, go into the bathroom and get the first aid kit and a washcloth. I need you," he instructed, looking in the general direction of Gazzy, "To go through Max's closet and get as many blankets and towels as you can, and Nudge, I need you to boil some hot water. We need to bring her temperature up and clean the rest of the grime."

They wasted no time as half of them dispersed in several directions, leaving only Iggy, Fang, Angel and an unconscious Max in the room. Iggy paid no mind to the sobbing Angel nearest the exit, trying to focus solely on patching up Max's wound. He wouldn't know what to say to the little girl anyway, and he didn't have the energy or the will to reprimand her. Fang wasn't given any task because Iggy knew he wouldn't want to be anywhere else but with Max. And true enough, Fang gave a small nod to Iggy, even if he didn't receive it, and walked to the other side of Max's bed to sit beside her sleeping figure, holding her uninjured hand tightly in his. Iggy could hear Fang's labored breathing and faintly wondered if he was trying not to cry.

Ella and Gazzy were the first to return to the room, but Iggy had to wait for Nudge, who eventually stumbled in with a bucket half full of the steaming liquid. Iggy immediately got to work, deftly bandaging the bloody bite in her forearm as the others scrubbed down her dirt-streaked face and arms before cocooning her in blankets. Even Angel eventually helped as she gravitated towards the end of the bed and removed Max's shoes and socks for her, working silently in unison.

The bite was deep, but wasn't grave enough to need stitches. With a towel underneath Max arm, Iggy applied antiseptic to the gash, biting his lip as he felt Max wince in her slumber. Once the individual tiny cuts stopped bubbling, he then wrapped her arm in gauze and taped it with a flourish. The last thing he needed to do was place her arm delicately over the covers, and at the last minute decided to force-feed her some water to avoid dehydration.

Everyone then had stepped back to give Max space. All except Fang, who was still holding her hand in his, and with the other was lightly stroking her dark blond hair. He was far too engrossed to notice that they had moved away.

"Fang," Gazzy started, his voice barely above a whisper. "We should go."

"I'm not leaving Max," Fang replied with conviction, as if it were it were the most obvious thing.

Iggy spoke up. "She's safe now. We need to-"

"Is she? Is she _really_?" Fang couldn't help but lift his head to snap at the other boy, "No, I need to stay with her."

"I can guard her, Fang. I'll stay. I think you guys need to talk," Ella interjected with diplomacy, hoping that Fang wouldn't lash at her too.

Before Fang could quip something in return, Nudge took a step forward and said with a certain hardness in her voice. "Ella's right; we need a flock meeting. Now."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

It's been a while since the flock called for an official meeting all together, but Nudge didn't want it to be for something like this.

All five of them were gathered in the family room, and she wanted to laugh at the irony of it all. It saddened her how they would only come to this room whenever something bad happens, how disasters bring her family together.

Yet even now, even with the knowledge of Max's death, it didn't quite bring them close enough. The non-existent distance stretched on for miles as each member sat alone with the exception of Gazzy and Iggy, none of them making eye contact with one another.

How could they even pretend to act like a family when Angel, the youngest of them all, had just committed the gravest mistake of her life? She was crying without shame and creating the most heart-wrenching noise a seven year old could make, but no one pitied her and no one cared enough to. She would suffer all on her own.

Gazzy stopped the habit of crying a long time ago. Even since he was a little boy, he'd learned from the older kids how to control the urge and swallow your emotions. Especially since he looked up to Fang and Iggy, who he knew had both endured many surgeries awake and without anesthesia back at the School, he followed in their footsteps to set an example for his little sister. But now there was no stopping the tears as he sobbed and sobbed onto Iggy's shoulder, his cries rivaling Angel's. They were loud and painful to the ear, but he didn't care and allowed Iggy to pat his back in comfort. He had every right to cry at that moment – he just found out his sister was dying.

Iggy was much more composed, but there was no mistaking the red and puffiness around his eyes. As he continued to cradle his younger brother as he used to when Gazzy was five, he was still trying to make sense of everything.

This was all just a lie. Just a crazy, messed up lie that would go away in the morning. Iggy would say that he would believe Max's expiration date when he sees it, but he _did_. He saw it with his own eyes and there was nothing in the world that could convince him otherwise. Yet, he was still in denial. The thought of Max dying was just unfathomable. Iggy knew about her mistakes and her weaknesses, but even then he always thought of Max as someone immaculate and unstoppable. She was _Maximum Ride. _Iggy could never imagine someone so strong ceasing to walk, and talk, and exist in the blink of an eye. No, he wasn't going to believe it just yet.

Leaning against the far wall in the room was Fang, who had the most different response to the news among the flock. The few small tears that dripped down his jaw were the only indication that he was sad, but other than that Fang was livid. He was just _so_ angry. Mad at Angel for the things she said, mad at Max for keeping this from him, and more than anything Fang was mad at himself. He wanted to hurt Angel, and shout at Max, and beat himself up for not noticing what was wrong with his best friend. He knew her – he was supposed to know her better than anyone else.

Fang could usually keep his emotions in check but there was nothing stopping the inner turmoil and confusion now. Why did Max keep something like this – her freaking expiration date _of all things_ – from him? Didn't she trust him? Wasn't she supposed to? Why didn't he ever notice? Why was he so oblivious?

And more importantly, why did he suddenly feel like he was dying too, when it was only Max who possessed an expiration date?

To occupy his mind, Fang focused his gaze on Nudge. The task was next to impossible as he clenched his jaw and dug his fingers into his arms, resisting the urge to bolt right then and there and run back to Max.

Taking up the rest of the space of the family room was Nudge, who was pacing back and forth on the carpet like a madman. It was a wonder how she hadn't worn the carpet to threads as she strode on an endless trail, her mind pulsing with various thoughts of Max's and her own.

Nudge didn't even know where to begin. She took it upon herself to let the flock know what Max was going through. She'd felt it herself, when she was cleaning Max. Psychometry was an amazing ability, but it was also a heavy burden. The more she touched Max as she scrubbed away on her filthy skin, grasped her cold fingers and stayed in the confines of Max's light blue room filled with all her emotions and thoughts that reverberated throughout the walls, the more Nudge understood Max's actions and pieced together her horrible story. She found out everything, went through what Max went through in her mind, and the rest of the flock needed to understand just what she was trying so hard to hide.

Now she knew why Max decided to keep these things from them, why she didn't want to accept their help, as torrents of empathy threatened to suffocate her. Max may have just succumbed to self-infliction and lost consciousness but Nudge still held such high respect for her, if not more, for braving numerous adversities all on her own.

Nudge was going to make them see just how strong Max was, make them think she was worthy of the respect they once held for their former leader but it was so hard to put everything into words. How do you even begin to expound on something so intensely intangible? How do you describe the heartbreak, and the struggles, and the madness, and betrayal in mere spoken words that would not do the feeling justice? She was proclaimed the Nudge Channel for a reason, but she honestly didn't even have an outline of a speech mapped out in her mind besides scolding Angel for her recklessness.

Among the wails and footsteps that counted down the past time, Nudge whirled around seconds later and decided to address the one thing she was sure of, the one that started this whole mess even though she was the last person Nudge wanted to confront.

"I can't believe you, Angel," was the first thing Nudge breathed, staring down the little girl.

Angel, in turn, sighed before subduing a hiccup. She knew a lecture was coming, and she knew she deserved every single harsh word that would come out of the flock's mouths, but she couldn't handle that now. Not right now, when it was already so difficult to breathe. "Please don't, Nudge. I don't need-"

"No, you listen to me right now. Get off your high horse and act like a team member for once, because Max is _dying_ and you just very well gave her a reason to end her life," Nudge spat, fighting down the urge to hit her. "I mean, what the _hell_ were you think? Never mind the fact that Max is dying; you do not call someone who _raised_ you, useless. In fact, you don't call _anyone_ useless, okay? Even if she wasn't dying, you had no right to treat her like that. You do _not_ have the right. You're not any more important than the rest of us. How would you feel if I said to your face that you're of no value or significance in this family, huh? That the world would be better off without you? Because Max has done a lot more things than you can ever accomplish in your lifetime.

"She was the one who raised us, and took care of us. She didn't have to save us. She didn't have to do anything for us, and yet she took care of us like we were her family even though she was only 12 years old.

"You didn't have to teach three other kids how to fly, to read, to write. You didn't have to steal for food and money just to be able to pay the bills and keep your family alive. You didn't have to teach everyone else how to fight and stay alive. You didn't have to keep a smile on your face when all you wanted to do was cry because you didn't know what to do when Jeb left. And you didn't have to be _scared._" Nudge's voice shook at her last statement, recalling even the memories of hardship that Max had kept stored in the deepest recesses of her mind. It wasn't something Max particularly thought about; Nudge knew that Max never really liked to look back at their past, but it was easier for her to read all Max's thoughts and emotions when she was unconscious. Nudge felt more than what she was looking for, and even wished she could forget some of things she found.

"She could've left your sorry ass back at the School, but she insisted on taking you with us. And she raised you, and protected you, and she fed you, and read to you, and comforted you, and _loved_ you. She only ever loved you, Angel, and you wouldn't even be the person you are today if it weren't for her. So tell me how Max could possibly be useless, because if there were any appropriate word to describe Max, she would, and always will be, a leader. No, Max is more than that. She's a _fighter._"

Fang didn't want to hear this.

On the outside, he still looked like the Fang that the flock was used to – his pose nonchalant but never fully relaxed, with an indiscernible look in his eyes that only Max would be able to interpret. But inside, it was killing him.

He already knew all these things. Heck, he'd heard some of these things from Max firsthand. It would just drive him even more insane, to listen to Max's sacrifices. To know that if Nudge went on, she would start talking about the things he could never repay, the things that beautifully made her Max.

It sounded far too much like a eulogy.

He made a move to leave as quietly as he could, desperate to go back and stay by Max's bedside, but one look from Nudge kept him rooted in place. He didn't want to hear this, but he needed to.

"Do you know? Do you know just how strong she is?" Nudge picked up from where she left off, finally finding her voice to defend Max. "Y'know, Max continued to do her duty when she was the leader. The recon missions weren't much, but they were something, and she'd saved our asses on more than one occasion from them.

"She must've easily tired, or dealt with a lot of headaches but she headed our missions anyway. I'm sure you would know how difficult it is," she said, turning her attention to Angel and trying to remove as much malice from her voice, "There will always be this paranoia that suffocates you, an endless fear that your family might be taken away, or that you might not live another day. You're constantly worrying about not just yourself, but a handful of other people. There was that, and there were her powers. She was developing _16_ other abilities, but more than that, she was nursing the side effects of it. Alone.

"She had a long way to fall and she fell alone.

"Sure, we all have our own battles to fight, but isn't it enough that Max has to save the world? There were enough problems on her shoulders and yet she acted like everything was fine. Yes, she's smiling but that doesn't mean she's happy. Yes, she's laughing but that doesn't mean she's okay. Yes, she doesn't talk about her problems but that doesn't mean she doesn't have any. She's just good at pretending. _She's_ the one who taught us how to. And she'll be strong until the end. She didn't want us to see her suffering, to see her weak, but that was the very reason why she was arrogated from position as leader in the first place.

"We threw her out when she needed us the most. She won't admit it, but she needs our help. She needs _us._ And she came back so she could help us, _us_ – the people who kicked her off her pedestal - because more than flock code, she still considered us her family. She never stopped loving us. She trained you with your power," she said pointedly to Gazzy, "And you're just lucky she didn't rip your head off when you broke up with her." She then turned her attention to Fang, the pain in Max's chest resounding in her own that night he broke up with her.

"You broke up with Max?" Gazzy whispered, completely out of the loop of things as he turned his puffy red eyes to Fang. In fact, everyone turned to look at Fang, whose jaw and fists were clenched at the reminder that Max technically wasn't even his.

"She needed you, but you let her go," Nudge accused.

"It was the right thing to do."

"Did you listen to your heart or your head? Because sure, you distracted each other but that was what she needed the most. A distraction – she needed a break from her life, even if she didn't know it," she responded, sounding way beyond her years.

Fang's voice was quiet. "How do you know?"

"_Because I felt it._" The tears finally spilled from Nudge's eyes. Tears she held back for so long. "I can _still_ feel it. She was trying to tell us, shouting for us to listen, but we didn't pay attention. We didn't hear it. Her heart was just waiting to be heard.

"Don't you see? After everything we did, she called us her family. She only wanted our approval - that she was strong. She just didn't know that she already was. And now we find out she has an expiration date. Who knows how long she's had it? We assumed that maybe she's been despondent because she was tired, or weak, but all this time it was because she was dying. She's _been_ dying, and from the way we've been treating her, I'm surprised she isn't already dead," she cried, an invisible weight on her chest, crushing her lungs and squeezing her heart.

It was hard to imagine a world without Max; she was a constant in their lives. It was like every single memory Nudge had with her replayed in her mind, and Max was slowly disappearing in the images – of Max tucking her in at night, patching up her wounds and smoothing back her hair with affection. All of that, gone.

"She can be so dumb sometimes," Iggy mumbled under his breath, but was still audible enough for the flock's ears.

"Max was trying to protect us, trying to be so noble." He looked up at no one in particular to feign strength, but his cracked voice betrayed him. "I don't think she wanted us to get attached to her. It made sense, why she's been keeping her distance. After everything, even when she's dying, she still doesn't want us to get hurt."

* * *

**Whew. Well.**

Sorry if that was a really dramatic one. Chapters 1-23 were building up to this and you can't expect Max's plans to just happen smoothly. And if you'll notice, not once has Max cried about dying. Yes, she got teary eyed, or a few tears actually streaked down her cheeks but not full blown sobbing. I think she needed it.

Some may say this was exaggerated, others will think it was underdone, but it all depends on how you felt while reading it. Because I can't imagine it myself. And if none of her rants made sense, it's because it's not supposed to. She wants to find answers to her own questions, but she doesn't want to think about it. She didn't want to be followed but she expected to be found.

**Now, **this is probably the last time I'm coddling you for a long while. (Why yes, this _was_ coddling.) Let me explain my situation clearly:

I go to a competitive private school. We're less than a hundred in my year level, meaning to say we're all vying for top positions in the batch. I'm part of the top 20, and that in itself is a feat. There are no AP classes or stuff like that because our _normal classes_ are already AP. Our schedule is different every day of the week, so I'm taking a total of 9 classes every week. Recently, we were mandated to take an extra subject (mine's Spanish), so now that makes 10. I've got extra curriculars – school newspaper, as well as yearbook comm – so I'm not just writing for this, but I'm editing write-ups and writing articles. I'm a senior, so I've also been studying for college entrance exams (my last one's on November). On weekends, I'm either teaching catechism, reading, or trying to have a life (i.e. hanging out with my friends, etc.). And on weekdays, I get home at 6pm after classes since I live three cities away from my school, so between my showers and dinner with my family and school work, I don't have a lot of time to myself. I'm really trying, but I hope you understand how difficult this is for me. I don't mean to downplay any of your business – I'm sure you're just as busy as I am – so I know it's all me and I'm just not good with balancing all the shit I need to do. In fact, some of you may have it worse – sports, tutoring, music lessons, cheerleading even – but I swear I'm not cut out for a full plate.

**I hope that clears things up a bit**, why I can't post every week like some authors do or why it's taking me so long to write and post. It's inexcusable – I try my best to separate my personal life from my writing – but **please try to understand.**

**Now I shall leave you with that poem** a reviewer made for chapter 29. I just remembered about it recently and it's probably the last time this will fit the setting…

Betrayal

It's the final straw

Betrayal

Ignoring as I call

I'm pleading and I'm begging

Please don't do this now

Don't cut my final strings away

My life line that you hold

I have a deadline for my breaths

This to you I never told

But still so heartless

As you all betray

Alone I feel

Lost my way

**-Poetschmoet**

**Peace out.**

.: Tiffany :.


	53. Getting Over, Getting In

Dec. 21, 2012. Friday. (1:31am)

**Hello friends :)**

I'm finally, _finally _on my Christmas break for the next two weeks, and neither am I dead.

Yes, it's already December 21st for countries like mine (the Philippines) and I am living testimony and proof that it's not the end of the world. Unless of course there was a specific time of the day when the universe would implode that we didn't know of. :P

Many thanks to all the readers, and especially the reviewers, of this story. I honestly can't thank you guys enough, and I hope you still stick around after making you all wait for so long.

**Without further ado - chapter 53!**

* * *

Let's fast forward to the morning after, during breakfast time, shall we?

I can't tell you how many times I've woken up feeling like I was mauled by a bear and thrown on front of an oncoming 18-wheeler truck, right before I was thrown into a blender and set to puree. It was the same old story, each and every time.

I was a bloody mess, quite literally. The stiff maroon of dried blood was on my sheets, on my clothes, and even smeared around my lips; my throat felt dry and tasted horribly like rust. Bruises spanned the surface of my skin, patches of red, green and purple from my fall in the park and my failed getaway in the forest last night. My sore and throbbing left forearm that laid limply on my side was a reminder of what happened last night, and I can't say I didn't deserve that.

Taking a shower was hell on earth, but it wasn't as if I haven't done it before. Once I was in more comfortable clothes, I re-bandaged my arm tightly, cleaned all the nitty gritty scraps and cuts, then changed my bed sheets before exiting my room and heading for the kitchen.

This was it.

This was the moment I was dreading for. I stood around the corner before the kitchen for quite a while, just standing there trying to calm my nerves. Frankly put, I didn't know what to say, what to do, how to react. What was one supposed to be like after finally admitting that she was dying? I didn't want to cry, and I didn't feel like it, but I knew I was sad. What else does one do when they're sad? There was also the undeniable fear under my skin, and that was pretty much the one thing I needed to remind myself of before I took a deep breath and strode into the kitchen. The more I prolonged this, the longer I would suffer.

The moment I stepped foot in the tiled kitchen, all activity and sound ceased. It's not that the flock couldn't keep quiet when need be, there was just this perpetual noise that came with us – a sniffle, a giggle, the rustle of wings. I have learned to live without lasting peace. But this time, you could practically hear all the pins dropping from around the world and all the gay babies being born.

For a split second, they all just looked at me, taking in my beaten up frame with all my wounds and bruises. I was trying to stand tall, but my fall from yesterday made it hard for me to breathe if I straightened my spine; and I knew that the flock knew I was trying. Their gazes in particular were zeroed in on my neck, as if they could see my expiration date curtained by my hair. Reflexively, I ducked my head by the tiniest bit and willed my cheeks not to flush any more than it already was.

Thankfully, Iggy was the first to speak as he cleared his throat and raised his sightless gaze to mine.

"Well you're looking dapper as always," he said jokingly, flashing me that crooked smile of his. I almost believed that nothing changed, that no one was the wiser, but of course… "I didn't think you'd wake up for at least another hour. I was preparing you breakfast in bed."

"Good morning, Max!" Gazzy greeted from his seat on the wooden breakfast table, patting the chair next to his. "I saved you a seat," he said, even though there were four other vacant chairs surrounding the table. Nudge and Angel, too, sat with him at the breakfast table, side by side, and I was just about ready to get a heart attack when Angel flashed me a kind smile, something I haven't seen in the longest time.

Ella stood up from her seat on the kitchen island and ushered me right where Gazzy indicated.

"What drink would you like?" she asked as she pulled out my chair for me to sit in. She left for the fridge before I could answer, knowing that I always drank orange juice in the morning, and happily did the favor without any complaints.

The only person who hadn't acknowledged me yet was Fang, and that may be due to the fact that I haven't even looked at him since I entered. I could see him through my peripheral view, characteristically clad in black from head to toe as he leaned against the marble counter by the sink, but there was no way in hell that I would look him straight in the eye. His stare was capable of many things – intimidating me, hurting up, chastising me. It would tell me everything in his mind, and I was afraid of knowing.

"Guys, you really don't need to-"

"Is your arm better? It didn't get infected, did it?" Nudge cut me off, reaching across the table to grasp my injured arm gently. Her fingers skimmed with the lightest touch across the bandages, as if she were studying or assessing my work. Her eyes went from my arm to my eyes, her round brown ones looking at me with warm sympathy. I couldn't stand it.

"No, it didn't," I answered back absent-mindedly. "Wait guys. Stop it-"

"Voila!" Iggy came just on time, brandishing a huge plate full of French toast, eggs, cherry tomatoes and all that delicious goodness. The plate was stacked full, towering like a pyramid. "There are seconds back there," he pointed towards the stove. "Just let me know, okay?"

I didn't even notice that Gazzy had left the table and went to go fetch a placemat and utensils as both he and Ella came to stand next to Iggy and fixed the meal before me.

"Hold on a second. This isn't necessary," I said. I didn't know how to handle this situation. I was prepared for a sobfest or more screaming, but all this polite and gallant crap?

"Don't even worry about it. Just eat and rest and we'll sort things out later." Even Angel was in on this act, and I had about enough of it.

"Can you all just stop for a moment?" I sighed, putting my face in my hands.

"Relax your back, Max. Why don't you just-"

"No, _SHUT UP!_" I blew up through clenched teeth, looking at Iggy in particular for speaking last. "_Stop._ Stop acting like – like _this!_ I'm not some handicap or elderly that needs assistance at every turn. I'm still _me!_ I'm still Max! I don't want you to treat me like some fragile vase, like I'm going to break. If you're angry or curious or even indifferent about this then show it! But please don't act like everything's fine when it's not, _okay?_" By the end of my rant, I was screaming. It couldn't be helped.

I knew exactly what they were doing. It was just like the time I'd developed my force field ability, or when they found out that I was suffering from the side effects of my additional powers. Once again, they were _babying me._

I've said it once and I'll say it again: I hate being treated like a child. Though I was only 16 physically, I believe I had the mind and experiences of a grown adult. I didn't need pity or assistance when I was younger and I certainly didn't want it now.

I didn't want it, now that I was dying.

Everyone was quiet again at my words, people biting their lips and wringing their hands. It went on for what seemed like eternity that I was even tempted to leave, despite not having touched my food, just to save myself from the awkwardness of it all. My hands were clenched into fists atop the table and I stared at the butter melting on the surface of the pancake in front of me until a few whispered words filled the air.

"Max…how long have you known?" Iggy asked with such resign so quietly that I strained to hear it. Ever the direct one. I was taken aback by how straight-forward he was about my expiration date, no beating around the bush, but this was what I asked for. This conversation had to be dealt with.

Thinking about it, I internally cringed at the truth. I decided to be honest with them anyway. "…I found out two months ago." And from around the room, almost all their eyes darkened considerably.

"When? When was this? How did you find out?" Nudge's voice was a mixture of accusation and sadness as she leaned forward on her seat.

Her question was coincidentally specific; I've been holding that piece of information in for so long. Giving a half-hearted laugh, I replied, "Do you remember that day? When I screamed after my shower and you all came barging into my bathroom?" Their looks of comprehension said it all. "…I saw it in the mirror."

"But that means you only have a month left," Gazzy said without skipping a beat as he counted on his fingers, a different kind of comprehension seen on his face. I didn't want to burst his bubble and correct him that it's been a bit past two months now.

I didn't know what to say to that.

"Max…" Angel cried, her voice meek and wispy. She didn't look like she wanted to be the one to speak, but she couldn't help but ask. "Why didn't you tell us? Were you ever planning on telling us?"

My throat got felt tight and warm at this.

I was still mad at Angel.

It wasn't like I had forgiven her overnight. I guess I was just a sucker for these kinds of things, that Angel sounded so much like the baby that I raised, that she sounded wounded, sad and just as scared as I was.

For the first time in a long time, she sounded genuinely scared of losing me.

"_I'm sorry,_" I breathed, looking down at my lap. "I was going to, eventually. I really was. I just didn't know how."

"Max, we would've understo-"

"No, you wouldn't have." I shook my head. "At first I was just waiting for the right time, but there just never seemed to be an opportune moment. Everyone was always off doing their own thing – extra curriculars, sports, school events. You were all so busy having fun, being _normal_, and I didn't want to ruin that. Admitting I had an expiration date would just remind us all that we're not normal. Normal people _don't_ get expiration dates. I felt like I would ruin everything.

"And I guess I let that go on for so long because we started drifting apart."

"We're still family," I heard Nudge speak a little ways to my right.

"Nudge, tell me…" I said almost regrettably, lifting my chin to look at her. "When was the last time we stacked fists before going to bed?"*

That thought just occurred to me; it scared me. When _was_ the last time we'd done that? Because even I couldn't remember.

"Look at us. Just look at what we've come to." I gestured around the room. "We're not close anymore, and we all know it's true. You and Angel are _sisters_, Nudge," I spoke directly to her. "Considering all you've been through together, I would've thought that your bond would be stronger than anything. But look at the two of you. You can't even stand to be in the same room together because of a few disagreements."

I then looked at them collectively, hating that everything that was coming out of my mouth was true. "Same goes for the rest of us, because I know I'm guilty too. At first I was trying my best to make us a flock again, but then you all kicked me out of the flock and there was nothing I could do." Angel looked away at this. "I've been distancing myself because I didn't want you guys to find out." _I didn't want you guys to get hurt._ "What I did was inexcusable, but you guys are at fault too.

"I know I was the cause; I know I started this mess. My worst decision was this. Making us settle down, attending school and trying to live normal lives. At first I thought it was what's best for us, especially since we were so deprived of a life like this, but now I realize we'll never be normal, and we have to accept it. We're the only six in this world of our kind and we have to stick together.

"But these past few months…_it's like I don't even know you guys anymore._

"There were no secrets between us before. Do you remember those days? When we told each other everything? We live under the same roof now but I barely see all six of us together in the same room. We're living in our own worlds, caught up with our own things. When we were on the run, we were dirty, and hungry and tired, but we had each other. We would eat toasted rabbit under the same open fire and tell each other stories and jokes. We were in danger, but we were happy."

And of _all_ things, I started to cry. "And this is probably the biggest mistake in my life that I'll live to regret," I confessed, the tears falling onto my lap.

None of them could look at me now. I could only imagine what was going through their minds – guilt, maybe, or even a recollection of all the times we were happy. I didn't want to be the one to admit this, but the first step to solving something is by acknowledging it; and this problem has been going on for far too long.

Taking a deep breath and drying my eyes, I continued, "Maybe there would be no secrets or lies among us. If we were two years into the past I would've told all of you without a second's thought. I would've been scared, but I knew you guys would help me get through this. But now? I don't know if I can trust any of you. Not anymore. Maybe I didn't tell you guys not because I was scared of sharing the burden, but I was scared if you'd even care at all."

"Of course we'd care, Max. We'll always care." Iggy stepped forward to speak up, sounded so pained that I would even doubt them. I remember Nudge saying the exact same thing just two days ago. I knew I shouldn't have, but I did. I did doubt their love for me.

"Well it didn't seem that way when you kicked me out of the flock, or when you accused me of taking drugs. You guys know how hard it is for me to trust someone, for any of us to trust someone, and while I know you've all been trying to fix things, trying to get things back to the way they were, there's always going to be something in me that'll second guess your kindness." I looked at all of them. "Guys, we can't ever go back to the way things were.

"But that's just it, y'know." I subtly cleared my throat of any weakness, sitting up straighter on my seat. Resolve washed over me as I realized I'd given a monologue about my feelings for the past few minutes. It was probably something that I'd want to take back later on, but for now I would let them know my thoughts in black and white. "What's done is done and we can only move forward." My voice was filled with finality, letting them all know that it was the end of that discussion.

It was quiet once more. The flock didn't really know what to say after that. Heck, I wouldn't know how to pick up the conversation from there. Was it apology time? Do we all hug each other now and give false reassurances? I've never gone through anything like this, and I didn't receive some memo or bulletin either. I knew the flock was still dwelling on what I'd said, but I wasn't giving them a chance to say anything about it.

"So what now?" Gazzy asked with uncertainty, looking like he wanted to give his two cents.

I shrugged. "I guess now we save the world, keep doing what we were doing."

"Max, we're talking about your expiration date," Angel said, like it was the most obvious thing.

"Angel, there's nothing to do. Look, my main prerogative right now is to save the world. You remember what Jeb said. That stupid whitecoat gave me the ability of power mimicry to be able to complete my mission. That's the final piece of the puzzle. And if it turned up now, then it's time to serve my purpose. There's no time for distractions anymore," I said. My tone sounded resigned, exhausted by now. I just couldn't find the will in me to sound any livelier.

Iggy's expression changed from hurt to suspicious in seconds. He was always the perceptive one. "Looks like you have it all figured out, Max. So what happens after you save the world?"

I shrugged again. "That's up to you guys. I'm not the leader anymore, remember? But as sappy as it sounds, I'm sure you'll all get to settle down. Maybe even go back to having normal lives, though none of you are cut out for that." I laughed, but it wasn't all that funny.

My sister couldn't help but push forward through the flock to stand next to me, her eyebrows knit with concern. "Max…you speak as though you're not a part of our plans…" Then Ella whispered with reluctance, "You're talking like you're already dead."

"And you're talking like you're so surprised by this," I reply unemotionally, "What? Did you really think I'd make it out alive?" I looked up at her from my beneath my eyelashes.

"What is _wrong_ with you?" Gazzy cut in, raising his voice. "Why are you acting like this?" He sounded angry, but really, I could tell he was trying not to cry.

Still trying to keep a straight face, I told him, "Well I'd tell you that everything's under control and that I have a plan for everything just to make you feel better but then I'd be lying. And you're all older now and I can't protect you from the truth anymore. The truth is I'm _dying._ Every day, I draw nearer to the date but I can't stand by and wait for it to come. I have to do my job. Gazzy, the world's more important than I am." It was harsh. Admitting death to an eight year old isn't easy, and it isn't okay, but I couldn't keep pretending anymore. I just couldn't.

"You won't be wasting your time, Max. We'll try and look for a cure," Nudge's voice shook as she reached out her hand again to try to grasp mine. I pulled back.

"What do you think I've been trying to do for the past few weeks? There is no cure, _goddammit!_ No experiment has survived or defied it! I've tried everything! I've hacked Jeb's files and I've gone through both Itex and School archives. Hell, I've even snooped around mom's stuff! Nudge, I went through my _mom's stuff._ I've even lost faith in her and it's driving me crazy.

"There is no cure and I'm going to die. Either from my expiration date or from my mission. I mean, there are hundreds of Itex branches worldwide. A 16-year old bird kid is bound to get shot in the crossfire. And if I had to choose how I was going to die, I'd rather for something I believe in. It's-"

My voice was steadily rising again as I got ready to defend my resolve. I was on a roll, this close to convincing them that trying to find a cure would be a waste of their time, but I suddenly noticed a flash of black in the distance as it exited the room and I stopped mid-sentence to chase after him. The one person who's yet to say something about the situation.

The one person who's opinion matters most to me.

I was able to catch him out in the hallway after I'd pushed past the flock and staggered out of the kitchen, clutching my injured arm since I'd accidentally jostled it in my haste. I knew he knew I followed after him, but he continued to walk away as I called after him. Only on the third time I'd said his name, actually screamed it, did he stop in his stride and stay rooted in place. Just standing there rigidly like a black unmoving column.

"Fang..._s__ay something,_" I whispered. I wasn't sure if the flock had followed the both of us out into the hall, but it certainly only felt like the two of us, our breathing the background noise in this timeless space.

My blond hair billowed around my face, and I focused my gaze on the light strands rather than Fang's figure. He looked about to leave, and I didn't want to see him walk away.

"It's either silence or screaming. Take your pick," he finally said, still so quiet, still motionless.

"You're being really unfair right now."

He abruptly turned around then, taking three steps towards me until he was only about two feet away. I didn't even have the time to show my surprise or back up. This close, I could see the storm brewing in his eyes, and the sadness he would never confess that lined his irises.

"Oh, _I'm_ being unfair?" he spat, "I told you the truth when you asked for it. I explained why I sided with Angel and told you how I felt. What's _unfair_ is that you've kept all this from _me._" By the end of it, he'd poked me hard, right beneath my collarbone. Hard enough that I took a step back and had to catch my breath from shock. I didn't think Fang would act like this.

"Your comparisons are unparalleled." I tried to defend myself. "You know that's not the same thing!"

"_You don't know how I feel!_ I know you're dying but don't you think I feel _the same way?_" He'd been shouting, but suddenly clamped his mouth shut, saying something he wasn't planning on admitting. "I just don't understand how you could keep this from me. Max, I thought you trusted me."

_Trust._

This whole issue began and ended with trust.

While I wasn't completely sure if I did trust the person I love, however messed up that sounds, it wasn't really trust that stopped me from telling Fang.

"I'm _so_ sorry," I cried, tears streaming down my cheeks. It seems I would never run out of tears. "I wanted to tell you, I really did – you _have_ to believe me…

"But I was _so scared_. I was scared to say it out loud because it made it true." Reaching out, I held onto his hand. For a moment, I wondered how he couldn't see right through me, through the web of lies I spun. Maybe I had overestimated our relationship.

But no. No, I was just that good at pretending. And because I was just that good, I knew I had to keep pretending. I hope he could see my sincerity now; I hope he knew how hard it was for me to admit fear.

"Fang, you've been nothing but gracious and kind to me. Out of all the things in my life, you've been a constant. You're something I'm sure of, something that's real. And if I confessed to you that I was dying, then it would become real too.

"You kept saying that things would be okay, that everything was fine, and I so badly wanted to believe that. I didn't want to correct you otherwise. I wanted what you were saying to be real, instead of our reality." I squeezed his palm in mine. "I'm sorry."

I got no response.

That made me cry even harder, forcing down the sobs that rose in my chest. Fang wasn't holding my hand, his long fingers stiff in mine and I felt like he was trying to let go.

And then, "I hate that you've given up."

"What?" I blurted without really thinking.

"The way you're talking right now. You make it sound like there's no turning back."

"I-"

Fang shifted so quickly that in the next second, he was holding both my wrists in his hands, align with my shoulders, and leaning over me as he looked me straight in the eyes. "You know, the only reason why there's no cure is because you haven't found it yet. You're always talking about how there's always something – a solution, an answer, just _something_, and yet you're the first to give up.

"But y'know, if you won't find it then I will. I don't care if you're set on dying; I'm not gonna let you," he said, so sure of himself. I could see the disgust in his eyes, disgust for me, but there was also that tiny spark of stubbornness, and I hated how it made me feel a bit hopeful. "Remember what I told you – you die when we die."

When he walked away, I was left standing there in the hallway with my forearms still raised, breathing deeply.

'_Oh Fang…' _I couldn't help but mused, '_That's what I'm afraid of.'_

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I took yet another bath that afternoon.

I guess you could call it a waste of water (so sue me), but I found soaking in the bathtub to be really relaxing. It helped calm my nerves and straighten out my thoughts. After washing my hair a second time that day, completely ridding the dirt and blood from the blonde mess, I ended up lying in the tub and thinking about the future. Nothing too far ahead, nothing tangible – but I imagined getting plans underway, possibly moving out to a more secluded and safe place. I stayed there, sifting through my arrayed thoughts of Gazzy and Angel's laughter, of celebrating Iggy's upcoming 16th birthday, of my inevitable lengthy conversation with Fang, of everything my mind came up with until I had shriveled up like a prune.

It was already late afternoon by the time I pulled myself out, dried myself off, and changed into a tank top and basketball shorts. I was just exiting my bathroom, towel drying my hair in the process when I was surprised to find Nudge sitting on the side of my bed.

She had been waiting to speak to me, head bent down as she looked at her fumbling fingers on her lap. I didn't know if it was the setting sun that bathed against her hunched back, highlighting a few angles of her face and neck, or the fact that I had poured my soul into my earlier confession and admitted all my bottled up emotions, but I knew in that moment that I was no longer angry.

I felt lighter somehow, like my nasty display of word vomit from this morning relieved me from an incredible sense of unease I was never really aware of. All things considered, there was really no time to hold grudges anymore. Staying angry was tiresome, and I couldn't waste my life with petty hate.

I also couldn't find the will in me to be mad at Nudge. I rarely see her so unguarded, so herself, that I didn't want to be the one to ruin it. She's always pissed or worried or stressed over something nowadays that seeing her in this light, wild brown hair curling in all angles with her tall frame awkwardly slouching, made me see what Nudge is really supposed to be like – just 13-year old Nudge.

"Hey," I greeted, unsure of what to say.

Upon snapping out of her reverie and noticing me, she stood up and looked almost panicked for a second. "Max! I mean, hi. I hope you don't mind me entering you room. I swear, I didn't touch anythi-"

"No, it's fine." I smiled. Walking over to my desk, I exchanged my towel for the light-weight sweater I hung on the chair, putting on the mint green material. "So what's up?"

"Umm…There's no other better way to ask this, but you'd mentioned this morning that you had access to both Itex and School archives…and I was wondering if I could get them from you too. The pass codes, I mean. Like, I could hack into their software too, no prob, but why go through the trouble if you already have it? And I really want to help you, Max. I do. But if it's too much of a pain, then it's fine all the same. I can retrieve it myself, though I'm positive it's going to be cray tiring-"

"Nudge," I stopped her before this would turn into the full blown Nudge Channel. "It's fine. Go ahead." I even gestured to my computer as I walked across the room to plop onto my vanity's chair.

Giving a quick thanks, Nudge headed for my desk and started up my computer as I worked on my hair. It was still mostly damp from the bath, but I'd been sitting in the tub for at least an hour that the hair on the top of my head was already blond – instead of the usual dark brown that indicated it was wet. I even took a deep breath to prepare myself, knowing that untangling the perpetual knots in my hair would be lengthy, not to mention painful.

Back and forth, I ran my wide-toothed comb through my hair, all the while holding back my grunts and groans of agony. I never really developed the habit of brushing my hair. When we were on the run, I just usually threw my hair into a sloppy ponytail or hastily braided it down my back; and even when we still lived in the E-shaped house, I found the process too tedious.

As I brushed through the snarls and loops that only God knows how it got that way, the length of my hair soon started to fall down my back softly. It would never be completely straight like my mom or Ella's since I mostly took after my father (woe is me), but it cascaded past my shoulder blades in soft waves of light brown, caramel and bright blond. Even when I was finished combing through the entire mass, I continued to run over the ends as I absent-mindedly stared at my deft hands, passing minutes and wasting time.

"May I?"

My eyes darted to the person who stood behind me in the mirror and I'd almost forgotten that Nudge was still in the room. I glanced at my closed computer, to her outstretched hands at waist-level, to her face.

"Excuse me?" I didn't understand.

She gave me a warm smile, knowing that I didn't mean my statement in the wrong way. "I was wondering if I could do your hair," she spoke softly, slowly.

Without even realizing it, I let her.

She ran the comb gently through my head of hair a second time before sectioning a chuck from the front into three parts; she was braiding my hair.

As a child, I'd taught both Angel and Nudge how to braid hair – just the simple braid. Nothing fancy. But over the years, they both took an interest in learning about the other kinds on the internet. As I watched Nudge work, her fingers nimbly weaving through my hair, I was able to figure out that she was French braiding – one of the few techniques that I knew.

And the next thing I knew, I started crying, _again_. Tears brimmed in my eyes and I would sniffle every now and then. I really tried to force it back, but it couldn't be helped. The moment Nudge noticed the few tears that leaked and streamed down my cheeks, she wouldn't stop apologizing, thinking it was because she was too rough on my scalp.

But it wasn't that.

It was because I suddenly realized that I've been acting so headstrong and valiant about other matters…but I wasn't even fighting for my own life. In the beginning, I thought it was selfish to worry about myself, but it was important to care about yourself too; It was okay to be selfish sometimes. I may have been noble, but I was every bit as irrational.

The French braid began right above my left eye, where my overgrown bangs used to start. I hadn't really been paying attention to what Nudge was doing since I was so conscious of the redness of my cheeks, up until I felt Nudge gather the last few loose locks of hair from the right side of the nape of my neck. Then I noticed.

"What're you-" One of my hands reached out towards the back of my head, but Nudge was quick to swat it away.

"_Don't,_ ruin my masterpiece," her voice held humor, but looking at her face in the mirror let me know she'd started tearing up too.

I knew exactly what she was doing. She'd French braided my hair across the back of my head, a diagonal plait that started on the left side of my head and wound around to come to an end below my right ear, gathering all my hair away from my neck and exposing the six digits that marked my imminent death.

She was only hurting herself further. It would only scare her more.

"Nudge, stop-" I had that reprimanding tone to my voice, but she cut me off.

"No, leave it. You look beautiful with your hair out of your face," she told me, finishing off the tail end of the braid as it came to rest past my collarbone. Then she raised her head from her work to look me in the mirror. "Max, we're not going to run away from this. We're not going to pretend it doesn't exist, not anymore. You should wear your expiration date proud."

And before she left my room with the audible click of the doorknob, her last words resounded in my head throughout the entire day.

"_Let the whole world know you're going to defeat this._"

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I was on my third cup of hot chocolate when it seems I finally stumbled upon something of importance.

Ever since that incident with Nudge this afternoon, I was relentless in my forage through the Strohelm archives, clicking through all the files in an orderly fashion and only taking a break once to eat dinner.

My choice of hairstyle was met with various reactions from the Flock and Ella when I ventured downstairs, but I barely noticed their reactions or the fact that we were seven at the table, _complete_ for once. Nudge smiled brightly at me, and Fang wouldn't stop burning a hole with his stare at the back of my neck, but I paid them no mind. I was too caught up with my personal agenda, driven by this nagging thought in my head.

I made more progress today, having scanned through more than 350 documents; I was just about ready to gouge out my eyeballs. My body was ready to pass out, especially since I was seated on my desk chair all cocooned in my fluffy covers whilst relishing in the chilly but comfortable atmosphere of my room, but my will kept me going. That, and the Holy Grail that is cocoa, which I had stored above my mini fridge.

At one point, I was thinking that maybe it was time to put everything on pause for now and hit the hay, but then I'd just finished decoding a passcode to some file and in that moment it just finished loading.

And just like that, I was staring at Strohelm's Data for Inventory of Experiments.

The name wasn't lost on me, nor was the file's acronym: D.I.E. (_ha ha_). Most of the stuff in the Strohelm archive gave me a nosebleed; for an undereducated mutant bird-kid like me, it was pretty much rocket science. But this was definitely something of importance. The name said it all – these files contained the data for experiments of the School, experiments like me. And I'm sure I must be somewhere here, out of the hundreds of numbers listed, right? I mean, they wouldn't leave out the destined savior of the world, would they?

But the exact millisecond I clicked on the first file, _get this –_

The power goes out.

I was left frozen on my desk, muscles taut, murderous expression on my face and my hand ready to crumble the wireless mouse in my hands.

_Un-fucking-believable._

I knew I should've taken that as a sign to turn in for the day. My bed looked deliciously inviting in the dark, and I was just so, _so_ tired. I wanted so badly to just throw myself on the bed and go to sleep, but I found myself taking my iPod with me, pulling on a pair of Chucks in the next few seconds and heading for the door.

The curiosity was killing me and I just couldn't take not knowing.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Not a sound was made as Fang's bedroom door swung open, and yet Fang was already out of bed and poised with a pocket knife in his hands a second later, ready to attack.

It was a little uncalled for, but no one in the right mind bothered him in the middle of the night. Not even Max, though he doubted it would be her anyway, given the circumstances. He was _this_ close to throwing the knife too, if not for his enhanced vision that made out the outlines of two familiar people – Iggy and Gazzy; and upon recognition he sighed deeply and dropped the knife on his side table.

"It's almost two in the morning. Give me a reason why I shouldn't castrate both of you," Fang said tiredly, dragging a hand over his face. He wasn't usually this cranky, but due to recent events, he lacked sleep and couldn't stop stressing over Max. He'd only stopped tossing and turning in bed an hour ago from the hundreds of thoughts that plagued his mind; he didn't need this drama at this time.

Neither of the boys responded but instead, Iggy jumped Fang and slapped a hand over his mouth. In that instant, Fang immediately snapped out of his haze and looked at the both of them.

Only then did he notice that Iggy had that look on his face – the expression he always wore whenever he knew things were going to get ugly. Glancing over at the Gasman, he took in his defensive stance and the odd fact that he was brandishing two Nerf guns.

Peeling Iggy's palm away from his mouth, Fang wasted no time. "What's wrong?" he whispered, already getting that sick feeling at the pit of his stomach.

"I can hear people in our house," Iggy said urgently, his cloudy blue eyes filled with distress. "And the thing is…_they don't sound completely human._"

* * *

**Action time ;)**

*Who can remember or find when the flock last stacked fists before going to bed? Special prizes to those who do! :P

**Shameless advertising time!**

My fellow Filipino friend, **americanbread** (author of He's Out of My League, How To Probably Get Some), **and I wrote a twoshot collaboration** for **The Prompt**'s fourth challenge '**A Parallel Partnership**'. Both chapters are up! – americanbread's is the first, written in Fang's perspective; and mine's the second chapter – and **I would **_**really**_** appreciate it if you guys checked it out and left us a comment. :D** I'm sure you'll love the adorable twist as much as I did, and I enjoyed writing free-spirited Max (as always :P).

**And if you're interested yourself, grab a friend and join The Prompt's 'A Parallel Partnership'!** I highly recommend it, and the deadline was extended to January (10 more days, guys!) for more writing-and-editing fun with your buddy! I've got a **link on my profile** that leads you straight to the forum with all the instructions and guidelines, and I'd really like to read all your collab work. :)

Time for…question of the chapter!: **What are the different languages that you can speak?**

My first language would have to be English, considering the household and school I was raised in, and I can also speak Tagalog – the national language of the Philippines – but I'm not very good at it. :P

**So…**

How did you feel about Max's confession to the flock?

Do you like Fang's reaction?

Did you enjoy Max's little scene with Nudge?

Do you think Max is going to find a cure to her death soon?

And what do you think's going to happen next?

**Review, review, review!**

Peace out.

.: Tiffany :.


	54. The Labyrinth

Jan. 11, 2012. Friday. (4:11am)

**Hi guys :)**

I'm in an extremely fantastic mood right now because I just found out today that I got into my _dream university_, accepted into my first choice. (And that probably explains why I edited and posted this in a snap.)

All my thanks to **The Fair Maiden**, **fangsallmine1123**, **MissSemi-Dependent**, **TrisPrior** (love your username beeteedubs :P), **DancingintheRayne**, **maximumpotter101**, **book phan44**, **Jillian2232115**, **Ladybug3264**, **Racnea**, **RandomPeep** and **Shadow **for reviewing. It's recently re-'dawned' on me how blessed I am to have such faithful and wonderful readers, and I couldn't ask for a better audience. :) I'm so sorry that I keep you guys waiting for long periods of time, but thank you _so_ much for sticking with out with me.

Oh, and here's a shout-out to **SilenceIsInfinite**, my 550th reviewer for this story. You, my friend, are awesome. ;)

So…I'll get right on to it – **here's chapter 54!**

* * *

I was a freakin' idiot.

Power outages were not uncommon in Greymoore, and though we've never really experienced one in this house firsthand, it was inevitable that it would happen eventually. Be it a storm, or the snow, or simply because one of the power lines from the city that connected to our secluded home broke, I didn't think much of it. But that wasn't what made me an idiot.

I was stupid enough to let my guard down. This _one_ time, when I was exhausted, and sleepy, and sore, and admittedly scared, I'd made the mistake of paying more attention to my playlist instead of my surroundings.

I didn't know how I'd made the mistake. How I didn't hear the barely audible creaking all around when I was walking on solid marble. My humming was inexcusable; my ears were trained much better than that. I had the eyes of a hawk, quite literally due to all the bird genes, and yet I didn't stop to question how the shadowy figures were not at all shaped like furniture…

As I strolled as casually as walking through the park, flicking my thumb through my list of songs as I hummed to the catchy tune of some of the music Fang gave me, I made my way down a couple of halls on the way to the kitchen. I remembered that the generator for the entire house was located near the garage, the grey metallic box attached to the wall a faint memory when I'd head down the hallway before reaching the stairs to the cars.

Making a quick right, then taking a few paces till I turned left, I found myself right next to the double doors of the pantry before pushing past the door to get to the garage. In the wide, short hall, I skimmed my fingers across the surface of the wall until my fingers collided against something cold, and I knew it was the generator. Blindly, I swung the cover open as I continued to hum fervently, pulling down the lever to bring the power back.

Satisfied, I spun around to head back to my room, but instead came to look directly into the eyes of a stranger.

They were narrowed. Calculating. Predatory.

Inhuman.

And there were more than a dozen of them, all around me.

My stunned gaze hadn't lasted a second when the one on front of me lifted the side of his mouth into a sickening grin, revealing sharp, salivating canines.

"_Good night,_" he whispered in the dead stillness of the room, before pushing the lever off, plunging me in the darkness again.

And my hum transformed into a scream.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Nudge's heart leaped up to her throat as she woke with a ragged gasp, scrambling on her covers until she was able to get off the bed and stand on her feet. At first she thought it was just her, the dream seeming too real as she punched and fought against a bunch of Erasers, but there was just something off about the noise, and Nudge eventually came to.

But it was a little too late.

Sprinting across her room in the dark to get to the connecting door that led to Angel's, not bothering with weapons or even any footwear, she threw the door open to look for her little sister.

Nudge first noticed the five men – Bruisers – sprawled unconscious on the floor. The moonlight shining through the windows displayed the blood that was everywhere, smeared on the walls and spilled on the floor.

And lying in the center of a pool of blood was Angel dressed in her baby blue nightgown, white wings stained red spread beneath her, and a huge gash on her forehead with various cuts across her arms and face.

All Nudge could do was stare open-mouthed at the sight, her mind churning sluggishly with what was happening and praying that Angel was still alive. She almost didn't notice the three other Burisers heading for Angel until they'd redirected their attention to her, their golden eyes bright with malice in the darkness of the room.

As it was, Nudge's dreams were coming true.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

"_What was that for?_" Fang hissed as he clenched his jaw in rage, resisting the urge to punch Iggy back for slapping him in the face.

"Be reasonable, Fang," Iggy whispered as he shifted in his crouch next to Fang's desk, "We all know you want to go running off to Max and play Superman, but don't you think it's more logical that we all go together, watch each other's backs, find the rest of the flock and get to Max's room? That way she can cook up a plan and we can all escape into the forest from her balcony. That's our best bet," he finished, and Fang could've sworn Iggy rolled his sightless eyes.

Fang's initial plan of scouting the hallways invisibly was a good idea, but it _would_ be a waste of time to double back for Iggy and Gazzy, and he knew he shouldn't be underestimating their abilities. In fact, it would be best if they moved quickly. There was no telling if some of the Bruisers have gone up to the second floor, or if they've already reached the others. If they've already reached Max.

"Fine," Fang said, "Find a weapon and put on a jacket." His fatherly instincts couldn't help but surface, already thinking ahead on their escape plans.

"Are we gonna call 911? Dr. M?" The Gasman asked as he zipped up one of Fang's thick jackets, the article of clothing far too big for his nine year old body.

"No, that'll only endanger the authorities," Fang replied.

"And what can Dr. M do? Bake chocolate chip cookies and throw their chocolatey goodness into their eyes?" Iggy added as he properly laced up his shoes. "We're on our own, Gaz, and we have to hurry."

Picking up the tampered Nerf guns from the ground, Gazzy handed one to Iggy just as Fang selected one of his guitars from their stands and swung it over his shoulder.

"Well then, we better get right on it," Gazzy grinned wickedly as he pulled the safety.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Nudge's eyes adjusted to her surroundings in an instant, predicting the Bruisers strengths and weaknesses from the looks of their physical form as they approached her carefully, like how a lion stalks a gazelle.

She was built to be more attuned to the entirety of her environment, but she couldn't help but focus on the danger at hand, and make out the figure creeping around the edges of the room a second too late. Before she knew it, Ella had entered from the other side of the room and attempted to attack the closest Bruisers, raising her mighty arm with a glinting five-inch knife in her hand before bringing it down with force on the Bruiser's spine, surprisingly hard enough to drive the whole blade in to the hilt.

While the two other Bruisers remained distracted at Ella's sneak attack, Nudge threw herself against the one nearest Angel and let the rushing adrenaline take over.

They were much, much stronger than their past adversaries, this generation of experiments clearly more developed and improved over the years. It took more for them to fall, and their offensive strikes were solid and well-placed, but Nudge knew that they were lacking in two things.

The flock had more experience. Although most scientists say that they were obsolete, their lasting existence made them wise. They'd learned from Jeb, from the internet and TV shows, and especially from Max. They'd experienced combat and battle firsthand and had picked up techniques as they survived and moved on. The Bruiser may have hit hard, but Nudge knew where it would hurt harder.

Hand-in-hand with experience, Nudge had the rage in her chest that spurred her on. Fighting was easy when you were livid, and her anger in particular was directed at the Bruisers – angry at them for ruining their mission in California, for coming to Greymoore, for breaking into their home, and for hurting Angel, Mitzi and especially Max.

Time was ticking as she rose to her feet from bringing down the first Bruiser and headed for the second one, thrusting the heel of her palm up into its nose and subsequently punching him in the throat to block all his airways. As an afterthought, Nudge kicked him where it counts before going for the last Bruiser.

A brief glance at Ella splayed on the corner of the room was enough to fuel her momentum into a high kick, her foot connecting where Max had taught her where to specifically hit an enemy; where the spine connects with the neck; where she knew it would terribly hurt, and possibly paralyze.

As the Bruiser crumbled pathetically to the ground, she grabbed Ella's knife before making a beeline for said girl, veins still flowing with the rush of adrenaline. Luckily, Nudge didn't have to worry a second longer as Ella came to and slowly lifted herself upright, hissing and wincing as she rubbed a tender spot on the back of her head.

"It's not bleeding, is it?" Nudge asked tentatively. Ella shook her head quickly and instead, made her way to Angel to attend to her. She first checked her pulse, then for any wounds or broken bones. Only when Ella gave a single nod did Nudge relax all her muscles and drop into a squat next to her.

"What do we do now?" Ella breathed, lifting Angel's torso by her arms and looking at Nudge with worried eyes.

The latter girl was just about to mumble an 'I don't know', the words ready on her lips, but the situation really dawned on her when she looked at the other two girls in front of her – one innocent and the other unconscious. Cold anxiety fell upon her, like a bucket of water splashed across her back, and she couldn't just follow orders or trail behind the others this time.

This time, Nudge had to lead.

"Okay, Ella, I need you to carry Angel on your back. Make sure you have a tight hold on her, and you have to stay behind me at all times."

"You mean we're-" Her eyes grew into the size of dinner plates as she realized what Nudge was implying.

"You have to trust me on this," the younger girl softened her gaze and tried to look brave for the both of them. "Hold on to the back of my shirt and do not, at any moment, let go. I'll lead and defend, but I need you to work with me, okay?"

Ella nodded fervently as she hoisted little Angel onto her back piggyback style, handling her with utmost care, and focusing her determined gaze back on Nudge, very much like a fighter – like her sister.

"Ready?" Nudge looked behind her just as Ella fisted the hem of her shirt. "We need to get to Max. She'll know what to do."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

Fang groaned at the stabbing pain in the center of his hand, wincing at the sight of it pinned down to the wall of the hallway by a long knife, the sharp blade going through and through till the hilt. As if he wasn't already pissed enough, the sound of the Bruiser chuckling behind him in satisfaction made his blood boil. While the Bruiser was preoccupied with his own gratification, Fang retracted his hand from the wall, knife still skewered through the flesh and bone, and deftly brought down his palm on the face of the Bruiser, the knife slicing through the cartilage of the nose and into the skull.

With his free hand, he pulled the knife out slowly from the back of his hand as the Bruiser fell to the ground, before briefly surveyed his surroundings with his night vision.

The hallways on the second floor were wide – wide enough for a birdkid to let their wings loose – but at the moment, Fang, Iggy and Gazzy were very much cramped as they shared the space with about a dozen or more Bruisers.

The boys were fine in the beginning. Fang was able to use his abilities to make them all invisible as they held onto him, all three of them silently passing through the walls of the halls to get to Max's room as fast as possible. Their strategy was working at first, but it was only a matter of time before the usage of both Fang's abilities, something he hasn't yet mastered, took a toll on him. Because it was them, _of course_, Fang just had to lose control of his ability right as they were passing the hall on front of a horde of Bruisers scanning the area.

That's when all the shit went down.

Cradling his punctured hand, Fang tried to make out the shapes of Iggy and Gazzy in the dark amongst the other shapes of the Bruisers. Off to his left, the Gasman mostly used his feet to defend himself as he cradled his dislocated arm whilst suppressing the bleeding to a stomach wound. Picking up the neck of his guitar from the ground, no longer connected to its body, Fang strode towards Gazzy's aid, jamming the jagged end of the guitar's neck into the side of one Bruiser. With one last kick to its temple, courtesy of Gazzy, they fought back to back as a surge of eight more Bruisers fell upon them.

They were ruthless; blood flying everywhere.

Fang yielded the neck of his guitar with precision, using both ends to break bones, create wounds, and knock some unconscious. He'd even used the thick coiling strings to his advantage, wrapping them around one Bruiser's neck and asphyxiating him within seconds. Gazzy was fairing just as well, given he was only using his legs to defend himself. He wasn't as tall as Fang and Iggy, but he kicked in places he knew would incapacitate, and was even able to jump on Bruisers backs.

The hand held to his chest was still holding the Nerf gun. Fang deemed it pretty useless since the guns were more advantageous for long range shots, but quickly took back his thoughts when he watched Gazzy press the muzzle of the gun into a Bruiser's eye, pull the trigger, and draw back with a satisfied grin. As the Bruiser collapsed in a stiff heap, Fang stared at the crimson eye imbedded with something shiny, the Styrofoam bullets replaced with long nails.

With all the Bruisers but one scattered on the marble floor, Fang left Gazzy to finish off the last as he stomped over bodies to help Iggy at the end of the hall. Fang was still approaching them when he witnessed two Bruisers push Iggy onto his bruised knees, one of them holding Iggy by the throat as the other Bruiser stood behind Iggy and held his head in his large hands. It was as if they knew Fang was watching as each Bruiser held his mouth, the one in front hooking his fingers onto his bottom jaw as the one behind Iggy held onto his upper palate, and pulled.

Finally, Fang reached them and tackled one to the ground, but not before he heard Iggy's garbled scream. Not before he witnessed the side of Iggy's mouth rip, the serrated cut starting from the right corner of his lip up until mid-cheek.

Iggy was able to recover and flip over one Bruiser, grabbing a hold of his neck and snapping it instantly. And Fang, filled with rage, twisted the other Bruiser's arm back all the way until the wrist, the elbow and the shoulder dislocated, before he brought his fist down onto its temple and subsequently knocked him out cold.

"You alright?" Fang asked Iggy, his voice evident with concern. It was a stupid question to ask, but with the flock it was SOP to assess damage like wounds and bruises, or when you're possibly bleeding to death. Fang faintly saw Iggy's silhouette nod once, and was about to put a hand to his shoulder when Gazzy screamed in the distance for them to duck.

No questions asked, Fang and Iggy bent into a crouch just as Gazzy raised his arms, Nerf gun in hand, and aimed in their direction. All they heard was a gunshot and a proceeding thud; and were surprised when they saw a dead Bruiser behind them, eyes and mouth still wide open when he'd attempted to attack Fang, only to get shot in the middle of his forehead with a nail.

"Come on," Gazzy panted raggedly, "We're running out of time."

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

They were _everywhere._

All I could see was the occasional glint of their yellow eyes and their gleaming, dripping fangs. All I could smell was the putrid odor of hot breath and sweat. All I could taste was the blood in my mouth. All I could hear were the sounds of battle – the snarls of the Bruisers like lions; nails dragging through marble, though skin; a heavy thud on the ground from a fallen body; my own staccato breathing in bouts of ragged gasps.

And all I could feel was pain.

I couldn't focus enough on anything in particular to will an ability to my aid but my enhanced senses, blindly seeing a Bruiser headed for my forearm and jerking back my elbow into his throat, or thrusting a fisted hand into the looming face next to my ear. I was more concerned about staying awake and alive, and more importantly, warning the others about the intruders in the house.

Somehow, I'd fought my way into the kitchen now, the horde of Bruisers following and taking turns beating the crap out of me. The moonlight shining through the windows by the breakfast table made it easier to see what I was dealing with, and I tried not to get thrown off by their number or their appearance.

There were at least 20 Bruisers, their huge, muscular bodies taking up a lot of room in the spacious kitchen. In this light, I could see that they all kind of looked the same – same standard black clothing, same bronze hair, same yellow eyes and sharp teeth, same handsome yet dangerous looks.

Like _lions_. They were built to be predators.

But I was stronger than them.

Not physically – my lungs withered with every breath, one of my eyes was swollen shut, and my limbs were bleeding and numb to the bone. My wings were incapacitated as the Bruisers snapped some fragments in their meaty hands, the grating pain intensified as they plucked out feathers.

It has reached that point where you know you want to give up, and your body should've given up on you long ago, but you're fighting your closing eyes and the sweeping nausea anyway because you have something more worth fighting for.

The flock was upstairs – _my_ flock.

The Bruisers may have gone upstairs, and they may have gone through the rooms, and they may have already killed my sister or my best friend or my soul mate, but I couldn't think of these possibilities now. There were always _chances_. The chance to fight back or make it out, the chance to live. And while ours were always slim, I always held on to that little bit of chance that I could maybe save one of them, or all of them – or maybe even all of us.

I felt like I had a system all worked out, like my body constructed a pattern of punches and kicks on its own and it was enough to sustain both a good defense and offense on my part. I was doing okay, until a Bruiser fisted my already injured wings and dangled me off the ground like a puppet.

As if my other limbs weren't screaming with suffering enough, an abrupt high pitched shriek pierced the midnight air before I quickly closed my mouth and shook off all disorienting thoughts. Twisting in mid-air and dodging a sneaking punch to my face, I reached for the douchebag that was holding my wings. Once I had my hands wrapped around his forearm and upper arm, I snapped his arm hard at the elbow, reciprocating the pain he was inflicting on me tenfold so that his arm was bent completely the wrong way.

My eyes were already calculating my next move as I fell to the ground, the gears in my head continuously revolving as I rolled to my right to avoid an oncoming foot, jumped into a stand right at the edge of the crowd and looked one of the Bruisers straight in the eye as I dug my fingers deep into his bloody side wound, further aggravating the dripping bite from one of his companions, before putting all my strength into shoving him against a wall of about eight other Bruisers.

That was my opening.

Stumbling out of the kitchen on almost all fours, I easily navigated throughout the halls of the ground floor to get to the stairs as fast as my Converse-clad feet could carry me. Now that I was free of any clawed hands or unseen attacks, the post-effects of throbbing wounds, burning muscles and hot, wet blood running down my skin intensified. I was not some graceful bird lithely flitting in my getaway; I was breaking vases and crashing into furniture and frames in the messiest way possible. It wasn't a pretty picture – watching a broken girl running desperately, running in vain of unlikely chances.

Finally, the glass staircase came into view and my feet almost gave out from the sheer relief that overcame me. My whole heart swelled as I went up the third, fourth, fifth step, directing all my attention into my ascent and not the pounding of hurt all over my body. Still sprinting up the seventh, eighth, ninth step, I suddenly found myself falling forward, head slamming sharp on the eleventh, and I was being dragged to lower ground as if by demons.

With my fingers digging onto the edge of a step, clinging onto the slab of glass as though it were a life-preserve, I looked behind me to see two Bruisers, one frighteningly close as it grabbed a hold of one of my legs, and the other one right behind him.

"_Fuck OFF!_" I yelled as I twisted my torso, ignoring the crunching of my broken ribs, and used my free leg to kick the nearest Bruiser in the chin.

I'm almost positive my scream attracted the rest of the Bruisers to my location, but it couldn't be helped as the Bruiser dug his large, sharp claws into my calf as a last resort, dragging his fingers down my leg to find leverage, only to die and let go eventually. As if in slow motion, his head snapped back with a reverberating crack, neck bent at an awkward angle, and he collided against the Bruiser who was grappling behind him. They both fell into the abyss of the ground floor, the sound of their bodies crashing on the marble reminding me that I had to keep going.

I could only glance at my mangled calf for a second, hissing at the four long jagged slices gushing with blood, before I hoisted myself onto my feet and pounded up the stairs.

I felt it crash down on me again as I arrived on the landing of the second floor. Felt that sickening paranoia twisting in my gut, the panic filling my veins, the air thickening as everything felt like it was closing in on me.

The Bruiser from the bottom of the staircase was recovering, and I estimated I only had a few seconds left till he caught up to me.

I felt the weight of making my split-second decisions, my mind scrambling for the best possible route at the speed of light.

An aerial blueprint of the second floor flashed in my mind, all the bedrooms of my family laid out before my eyes. I could run around the halls to throw off the Bruiser, or head for the boys' rooms to gain some back-up, but as irritating as my nobility was given these past few days, I went with my gut-instinct and threw myself down the second hallway – the hallway that bypassed most of the rooms and led straight to my bedroom.

All I could hear now was my labored breathing as I turned left then right, rammed into a wall to turn right twice, leave a bloody handprint on the white wall to stop my momentum, and blink back the darkness from the corners of my eyes. At one point, I'd twisted my ankle as I skidded on a left turn, grunting low in my throat to avoid screaming any more than I already have, but the growling behind me seemed even closer now, and I swear I could hear him inhaling the scent of my fear with malice.

Running, always running, my eyes finally made out the door to my bedroom at the end of the hall, sighing with relief in spite of the ache in my ribs and surging forward with my uneven footing to get to my destination.

He was there now, only a few feet behind as I pushed my legs to move faster, forced my movements to be more agile. It was hard to ignore my thumping heartbeat as it tried to make its way out of my chest, and I felt like a mistake made – a tiny slip from the blood on the floor, a relapse in direction from the sweat dripping into my eyes, or a wasted backwards glance – could be my last.

Without skipping a beat, I reached my door and threw it open in an instant, bursting into my room with a dry gasp stuck in my throat. My eyes zeroed in on my side table, to the first drawer where I kept my spare knife, and bolted towards my bed.

I was halfway there when I felt him enter the room, his snarl piercing the night as he swiftly approached my escaping form.

It took four heartbeats to throw myself onto my bed, two to reach out and stick my hand in my side table drawer, and one last before the Bruiser jumped on top of me, his sharp fangs closing in on my neck.

* * *

**This was a pretty short chapter **considering my standard length, but 8 pages will have to do. :P

**Two things:**

First off, you guys might be interested in reading my twoshot with americanbread called '**Fateful Fall**', which was posted last October. Personally, I'm very proud of the project I pulled off with my friend, and I believe it's more deserving of comments – whether praise or even concrit. I hope you guys check it out :D

I also posted a Christmas oneshot titled '**Her Name's Still Max**' a little over a week ago, and that too is lackin' some lovin'. So far I've received nothing but good comments, and it might interest you guys if you enjoy feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. :3

To be honest, writing has gotten a lot harder for me; and I don't just mean the lack of time, but I also feel like **I'm slowly losing the will and the passion to write**. This chapter itself was a struggle, and the next chapter is perpetually being edited because it can never reach my standards. I'm in a rut, to put it simply. I know reading helps a lot, which I'm doing, but if any of you guys have more suggestions on how you guys get out of your writer's block, let me know.

**Peace out.**

.: Tiffany :.


	55. Author's Note 4

Mar. 29, 2013. Friday. (11:28pm)

**Hey guys!**

So…as you can see, this isn't an update.

And I'm _so_ sorry.

Basically my heart died just yesterday.

So last night, I was transferring some of my Word files to my external hard drive to make space on my laptop. My baby's quite old, so I needed some space to make it work faster, etc. I had cut-and-pasted _all_ my files accidentally – intending to leave all my Writing and Yearbook stuff that I needed to finish on my laptop – so when I dragged my Writing folder back to my laptop's Library…

Well, shit hit the fan.

I don't know if I accidentally deleted the folder in my laptop (but it should've been in the Recycling Bin, which it wasn't), or dragged it to another folder (though I'd already searched everywhere), but I'm highly suspecting I accidentally deleted it while it was still in my external hard drive.

And when I say my Writing folder, I mean _everything_ that I've written – the few chapters I wrote of Camp Northwoods, completed oneshots, WIP oneshots, all my story ideas that I planned to pursue, _outlines_ for all the stories ideas I planned to pursue, the 6-chapter story I was planning on posting soon, all 54 chapters of 'Secrets and Lies' including the ones I've just recently worked on and edited, as well as the meticulous S&L outline I finally, _finally_ finished, which was worth 12-chapters.

You can't imagine the pain I wanted to inflict upon myself for being so stupid.

I can't even recall what I'd specifically done yesterday – whether I had deleted it for sure, or whether it was because I didn't shut down my laptop properly or whatever – but my panic just made everything hazy, and now I'm just left with the unknown. I don't know where it is, but I didn't empty my Recycling Bin, nor did I format my hard drive, so it's just in my laptop, all written in code.

I'm most frustrated about the 'Secrets and Lies' chapter I finished, and the 6-chapter short story I was working on. Like, _holy shit_, it's one thing to have writer's block, y'know? I've had a reader suggest that I keep on writing because even when I'm uninspired or don't feel like writing, it still helps to go on. Even if I wrote crap, it was good to keep going on so that I could at least go back and edit when I was out of my rut. So I did, I wrote the next chapters and pursued this short story that came to mind – even if it was emotionally draining and was a freakin' pain in the ass to write. And _now_, it's all gone and I don't know what to do.

Anyway, I'm trying my best to retrieve my documents, researching on codes and downloading recovery software. In the meantime, you're going to have to wait a little longer for chapters since I either have to a.) magically restore them, or b.) re-write those chapters completely – and this process comes complete with mourning the loss of my outline, and the sixshot I worked on, and basically 3 years of hard work down the drain. I wouldn't want to post anything now, since I know that all my writing would be even crappier than the ones that I finished. You guys deserve carefully put together, edited, refined, quality chapters that I can't give now. I don't mean to be a downer, but it pisses me off knowing that it's _right here in my laptop_, only I've lost access to it.

**If any of you know how to access the Recycling Bin in an external hard drive, let me know. PLEASE.**

In other news, you guys are the first to know that **my collab story with** makorrashenanigans (formerly known as **maximumrain3) titled 'Unbeknownst' is officially discontinued**. I was going to let you all know about this when I came around to posting the real Chapter 55 that I just finished editing, but then this travesty happened and I'm reduced to letting you know this way.

I'll be posting an Author's Note in an update to 'Unbeknownst' on the 9th of April for full details on the discontinuity – so that's something to look forward to.

So yeah. There's the heads up for all you 'Unbeknownst' readers. And for those of you who haven't heard or have yet to check it out, go read the first 4 chapters of my collab story, under the username 'rememberingtoforget'. I pretty much wrote the entirety of those first 4 chapters so I encourage you guys to read something light-hearted; some of my writing when it wasn't all crappy yet. :P

I'll be graduating (oh yeah! And I'm graduating with honors just like I told you guys I've been aiming for! :D) on the 5th of April, so I wanna focus on that first. I also wanna prioritize enrolling into my new school. My classes for the next school year start on late May, so my summer is extremely short. I don't feel like writing any time soon, and I'm so discouraged from this episode that I think I'll put writing on hold for now – indefinitely.

Words could never describe how thankful I am for readers like you. I understand if you abandon ship on me like some of the others because it's taking me so long to write and update, and I appreciate your journey with me all the same. Thank you for understanding what I've been going through – and if you're willing to stick around – thank you for waiting patiently for updates. I wish I were better at this, and that I didn't have to let you guys down so many times. I hope to get back on my feet as fast as possible, and that some cosmic mambo jambo would make me return better than I was before. :P

Again, if any of you know how to access the Recycling Bin to an external hard drive let me know. ;) And feel free to review/PM me! I may not be available to write, but I'm always open to talking to others. :)

Without Wax,

.: Tiffany :.


	56. Promises

Nov. 17, 2013. Sunday. (2:53am)

**(Get ready for one of the longest AN you might ever read)**

**So, hi.**

I believe I owe you guys an apology for making you wait 10 months. Like _jeez_, I could have had a baby during that time (I'm totally kidding). And to be honest, I'm only updating because I'm in desperate need of a distraction.

So **I just watched the last 4 episodes of The Legend of Korra** and holy shit _I am in ruins_. I'm so emotionally invested in that show; it's not even funny. And if any of you are just as into it as I am, you know _exactly_ how I feel right now. This finale freakin' changes _everything_, and I seriously don't know what to do with myself until the next season comes out. Like _ooohh my God_, my heart will cease to ache until (insert specific event) happens again. I'm not going to get over this for like, the next 14 months.

Another blow to my already bruised heart is the fact that my iTouch – _my life, _basically – is in this perpetual state of limbo. For some reason the new IOS didn't load properly when I updated it, so I don't even know what to do right now. All my pictures that I didn't sync, all my notes _for my stories_ that didn't load in my e-mail folder - _gone_. Yes, I seem to have the worse luck because just as I'm building up my stories ideas in my handy dandy iPod, _it won't freakin' turn on anymore._

That being said, I needed to put my mind and energy into something else and this was my fallback. I've reached this all time low of updating when I'm not supposed to, and I know I'll probably hate myself in the morning. **This is a sporadic update.** While I have the next two chapters ready for editing, I don't think I'll seriously be coming back until I'm done writing this story.

As I've already mentioned in Chapter 54, I was losing the will to write and then all my work got deleted. Now I can't promise you that this chapter will be any good. I don't know about you, but when I write something, especially if it's _Secrets and Lies_, I give it my 110%. At any given moment in any chapter, I think about climate, setting, time & date, atmosphere, the characters and all their feelings, their senses, their train of thought. Everything. Down to a T. So when those chapters got deleted, I had recall all the scenes I've written in my mind - something I've already pushed to the back of my head. I was so focused on making it perfect, trying to make it reach my normal standards; that every mistake I saw in it made me hate it. I'll admit, it made me hate writing S&L for a long while. In the meantime, I worked on another minor project (that I'll be posting soon). Because I hated writing for S&L, I'm pretty sure I went back and worked on it about 10 different times throughout the 10 months I've been gone. After you read this chapter, I'm sure you'll notice how the writing is quite inconsistent - some parts very verbose and detailed, some casual, and some just plain cringe-worthy. Since I wrote between huge gaps, I started to forget certain parts of the story, some details that would eventually be important. As mentioned, my outline - my beautiful master outline with everything planned down to the epilogue - was also deleted in the Hard Drive Disaster of Summer '13, so I'm left to work with stock knowledge.

As of right now, **I'm also studying in university**. Just some of the few thing you might want/need to know: I'm on my 2nd term, so I'm basically 1/5 done with college; I'm failing Accounting like you won't believe, aaand I share a condominium inside campus with my two best friends from high school. As you all know, I can't write in the company of people – especially not with Rox watching Youtube videos at two in the freakin' morning – so I only write when I go home on the weekends _if_ I have the time and inspiration. I missed getting into the honor roll in the 1st term by 0.03 so right now my studies are my priority.

Guys, _**I'm so, so sorry.**_ I majorly suck as a writer. I'm not exactly the worse, but I'm not the writer I envisioned myself to be. I have no excuses, nothing else to say but sorry.

Apologies asides, **thank you so much for all your reviews**. Every single one of them. I never thought I'd get double digit reviews for an AN, and all your well wishes and advice was just amazingly heart-clenching. You guys are the best.

And because I never miss a shoutout, **here's to my 600****th**** reviewer: NeverForgiveALiar**. You're a sweetheart. :)

Additionally, from one Filipino to the rest of you guys in other countries, thank you thank you _thank you_. **A million times thank you** for all the prayers, support, donations, and love that you've shown for all the victims of Typhoon Haiyan. Although I wasn't personally affected, it still breaks my heart that 10,000 people have lost nearly everything; and I can't even begin to express my deepest gratitude to everyone out there who has helped. I'm sure everyone is well aware of the news and what's been happening so I don't need to expound on that. Though a black Christmas is upon my country this year, the sun will shine eventually. If there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that the Filipino people will get back on their feet. :) Please continue to pray and help the victims however you can, no matter how small the donation may seem – a dollar, a canned good, anything – that's one bottle of water, one packet of medicine, and one life spared.

**I highly encourage that you go back and read a few chapters to refresh your memory**. Some major scenes that you can start from are Chapter 43: Paintball Fight – when Mitzi dies, Chapter 51 – when Zach finds out Max's true identity and Max finally tells that flock about her expiration date, or Chapter 53 – the night after Max reveals her expiration date and all this shit is going down.

I have a lot more to say to you guys, but for now **here's chapter 56.**

* * *

In the stillness of her bedroom, with all her things splayed in its messy fashion and the serene brightness of the moonlight leaking through the glass windows of her balcony doors, the image of her room was tainted by the ugly heap of dead skin and dripping crimson coming from the bed.

It was really a sight for sore eyes to see a predator bite into the flesh of his victim, sharp fangs encompassing all the meat his expansive jaws could reach. His muscular body pinned her down, crushing already broken bones and irritating various open wounds, pulverizing her once beautiful wings into nearly nothing.

Nothing but the labored breathing of one could be heard, the grating noise echoing in the wide space of the room, and the victim underneath could do nothing but just breathe, or attempt to breathe as she tried to hold onto her life.

**- - - - -O- - - - -**

I can't breathe.

I couldn't _breathe._

I could only imagine the view of my bedroom from my memory, unable to move my head due to my position. I didn't _want_ to see the dead Brusier before me, his muscular form twice mine crushing the life out of me. It was enough to feel his heavy muscles pinch mine, and feel his thick bones snap my own and empty my lungs of any air. I was thoroughly disgusted with his head nestled against the crook of my shoulder, but in the battle of speed and accuracy, this fate was better than anything I could have ever come up with.

With my one of my arms pinned down to my side, I could just barely see my other hand over the Bruiser's neck, my fingers still gripping the object I'd used to stab him right in the jugular vein of his neck. It was amazing how I'm still alive and breathing, how he'd been aiming for _my_ jugular, only for me to rupture his and move my head at the last second so that his teeth came down onto my shoulder instead.

I was thankfully, and overwhelmingly, and luckily _alive_, but at this rate, it didn't seem like it for long.

I wasn't kidding when I said he was crushing the life out of me. Even if my arm gripping the weapon could move freely, though with much strain and effort, I didn't have enough strength to push the corpse off me. Every heave required breath, and as I struggled to remove the Bruiser's body from my own, my hand would slip from all the slick blood and my own weakness, and the more my lungs collapsed from the immovable mass.

That felt like the worse thing. I kicked up my legs to somehow alleviate the weight, making the jagged wounds scream in protest; and I even shook my head as I shrieked with what little I had left in me, making the Bruiser's sharp teeth scrape against bone and causing more blood to come pouring out of my shoulder and soak the back of my head. Just shrieking, and crying, and inflicting more pain to myself since both actions required more breathing, and I was running out of it.

This was it. I was done for. I neither felt relieved at the thought of at least postponing the Bruisers' attack on my family, nor did I feel the embarrassment I should've felt knowing that I would die because of a single Bruiser. I didn't feel a single thing because this couldn't possibly be the end.

My head was swimming with nausea, air entering and escaping my lips in short gasps. I was in the midst of clawing at the dead Brusier's arm in vain when I suddenly heard the scrape of my door intermingled with my desperate wheezing. Saving my breaths, blinking my tear-streaked eyes; I turned my head slightly to look straight into the wide eyes of Nudge, a horrified expression etched onto her face at my predicament.

"_Help me,_" Was all I barely respired from the bed before I saw her and Ella rush to my aid.

Sweet relief swept over me when their combined forces hauled the dead weight off of my almost dead body, and I was left inhaling lungs full of air and crying freely, lying on my disfigured wings and an alarmingly huge pool of my own blood. I brought my hand up to suppress my sobs, barely aware of the hands touching me reassuringly, crying from the pain and the freedom all at once.

I was brought back to the terrible present when they whispered my name, and I immediately sat up at the reminder of the rest of my family in all this chaos.

"Ella, Nudge," I rasped, blinking back the black spots in my vision from moving too fast and fighting the explosion of pain in my every muscle. "Are you okay? Are any of you hurt? Where's Angel?"

The both stood before me, mere shadows in the dark as Ella quietly pointed at an unconscious Angel on the floor right by my piano. But before any of them could speak, my ears picked out a couple of swift and muted footfalls in the hallway right outside my bedroom, _coming this way_.

It seemed I was limitless when it came to protecting the ones I loved, pleasantly surprised by the determination that coursed to the tips of my crimson-coated fingers and settled in the pit of my bruised stomach. I hastily yanked the object I'd used to stab the Bruiser with out of his stiff, beefy neck without a second glance; ushered Ella to crouch by the side of my piano right next to Angel; and brought Nudge with me across the room to stand a few paces on front of the door, ready to attack upon entrance.

One of my eyes was swollen shut, I could barely stand on my left foot, and I found trouble in simply breathing; but those were nothing but a few pesky nuances in the grand scheme of things. I glanced at Nudge out of the corner of my good eye, and saw her poised in a defensive position, armed with a bloody knife. Thirteen years old and already equipped with the skills to kill.

I was full of gashes and cuts, but beneath the surface of skin, I was more so filled to the brim with hatred and anger at the Bruisers – those _monsters_. Every burning patch of raw flesh, and throbbing muscle, and gushing wound only fueled my fortitude in keeping my family safe and ending those who threatened it with everything I've got.

We were both ready, heartbeats and breathing a symphony in the stillness of my room. I was only a step ahead of Nudge as we stood in waiting, listening to the barely audible steps as they came closer and closer. Nudge would follow my lead, just waiting for my signal; and I had tightened my grip on my weapon, bent my sore knees, and launched myself the second the door swung open.

We ran; ran straight with accuracy and intent. We were on the verge of slashing, hacking and fighting off the Bruisers when I had collided headlong into _Iggy_, my raised hand meeting his open palm as he caught my fist with my weapon in it.

"_Really_ Max?" he breathed when I caught myself, his cloudy cerulean gaze inches from mine. "Did you really think you could take me down with a _pen?_" He smiled, the grin far too wide and his teeth smeared red.

I lowered my hand and looked down at it; staring at the cheap ballpoint pen that was covered in blood just like my hands, the pen that was plunged into the neck of a Bruiser just minutes ago; before it clattered out of my grasp and onto the floor.

I looked at Iggy, and at the dark figures of Fang and Gazzy behind him; and now that I was completely sure that my family was here and safe, I collapsed into Iggy's arms with a lifetime's worth of exhaustion.

With an exclaim, both he and Fang supported me to the far corner of my bedroom, in between the space of my closet and my piano. Slowly, they lowered me against the wall right above the corkboard full of photographs and letters, and I bit hard into my lip to avoid groaning or complaining. When I opened my eyes to look at everyone, I could only make out six outlines of varying sizes against the even darker background of my room, had Gazzy not lit a tiny flame in his palm to illuminate our little circle.

To my left, Ella hunkered herself in a way I didn't think possible, able to sit underneath the piano with a sleeping Angel curled against her lap. She was visibly shaking, and there was this look in her eyes that she never should have had to possess. Iggy was on my immediate right, the lower half of his face bloody from an unseen wound. He was crouched next to me, alert, but had leaned back on his heels against the closet doors to steady himself. Nudge, Fang and Gazzy were all hunched before me, each nursing their own injuries. Nudge had this fierce look on her face, further exemplified by the jagged cut that ran from her temple down to the middle of her cheek, bleeding down her neck. I could see that her arm was gushing blood too, the hand still clutching the knife, but that seemed like the least of her concerns at the moment. Fang just sat still, back straight with his black wings folded slightly crookedly behind him. He couldn't have possibly gone through a fight like Gazzy and Iggy did and got out unscathed, which meant that he was clearly hiding his injuries from us, and hiding it well. With one flaming hand lifted and the other holding a Nerf gun taut to his stomach, Gazzy's face was set into a scowl as he did a once-over at all of us too, one of his eyes blackened and swollen to match mine.

And the common denominator in this equation was that we were covered in blood – all of us. Be it our own or others, we were painted in red on various parts of our body.

But that was okay too, because most of all we were _alive_.

"_Report,_" I said tightly, bending my left leg at the knee so that the cuts on my calf didn't touch the floor.

"Well when Ella and I found Angel in her room, she was already knocked unconscious." Nudge bit her lip. "She's got a couple of wounds on her arms and face, and she lost a lot of blood from a cut on her forehead, but she's stable. She fought off a few of them before we arrived."

After one glance at Ella, who was clearly still reeling from everything that was happening, Nudge continued, "Ella's fine…I guess. She's got a nasty bump on the back of her head from a fall, and a couple of bruises, but she's fine. I made sure, Max."

I didn't doubt her. The look she was giving me cast by the light from Gazzy's flame let me know that she went to extremes to protect both Ella and Angel, and I was so proud of her.

"And you?" I asked.

"I'm okay," her voice shook a bit, "I've got a few cuts too, and some broken ribs, but I'll live." She even had the strength to smile at me.

"And you three?"

"Cuts, bruises, and broken bones. What's new?" Fang said briefly, and I narrowed my eyes in suspicion.

"Nothing that'll let you bleed to death? Nothing too painful?" I questioned through gritted teeth.

"One of the Bruisers broke my collarbone-"

"Yeah, and a bunch of them assholes ripped my mouth-" interrupted Iggy.

"Iggy, _shut up,_" Fang reprimanded, and when I reached out with my good arm to tip the side of Iggy's face, I saw a serrated cut from the corner of his mouth that made its way to mid-cheek. It was no wonder his smile was disturbingly big a while ago; I winced at the thought.

"Fang's right. Just…don't say anything, Iggy. And you?" I looked at Gazzy.

"Just a dislocated arm, and a side wound." He was trying to play it cool, but anyone could've seen his grimace when he'd shifted in his position. "Nothing too bad," he hissed.

Then they all directed their gaze to me. Me, with the black eye and the busted lip, and the ginormous bite on my shoulder. Me, with the disfigured wings, limp on each side of me; and the disgustingly obvious slices on my leg. With the various open wounds, broken bones, welts, and cuts and bruises. Me doused head to toe in sticky, warm blood.

"So what do we do now, captain?" Fang asked, looking directly into my eyes.

And with that, I inhaled one last shuddering breath, exhaled the panic and doubt in my chest, and I got to work.

"Okay, Gazzy, Fang, there are flashlights and a first aid kit in my bathroom. Go now, _quickly_," I commanded, my eyes darting left and right, trying to think of a plan.

As the boys scrambled across the room to retrieve the items, I turned to Nudge.

"I need you to go through my closet and find as many thick jackets and sweaters as possible. There aren't much, but I think I have enough."

When Fang and Gazzy came back; Fang throwing me a flashlight, which I caught with my left hand easily; I told all of them to start dressing the most serious and uncomfortable wounds they had.

"Make sure to stop the bleeding. Set anything that's been dislocated or broken; and put antiseptic on all the wounds that you find, even the tiny ones."

My tone made they work efficiently, moving from one person to another in record time and helping each other patch injuries that were hard to reach on one's own. By the end of it, we'd used most of my clothes as makeshift slings or gauze, strips of my shirt wrapped around the huge, gaping hole in Fang's palm or tied around the skin peeled from Iggy's thigh. Strips from a pair of my jeans were tightly wound around Gazzy's torso as a bandage for the gashes on his side, and one of my tank tops was cut up to suppress the bleeding of Nudge's cut on her arm.

Most of the medical equipment was used on me, much to my refusal. I had sewn the side of Iggy's face to the best of my abilities, and he in turn sewed the four deep slices on my calf shut, the notches of the stitching straight and prominent. After gently rubbing a salve on it, and bandaging it with another one of my shirts; Iggy got to work on setting back my collarbone as he'd done to Fang and covering the multiple incisions from the Bruiser's bite with real gauze from the kit, cleaning the wound and taping it down carefully.

Just as Nudge finished putting plaster to a gash on Angel's forehead, I licked my cracked, bloody lips and steadied myself. But before I was able to break the news that I'm sure they were already all aware of, Fang beat me to it.

"We're going to run." It wasn't a question. Nothing need be explained as I gave a single nod and glanced among the grim faces of my family.

I was right in wanting to move to a new safe house, and I hated it. It wasn't so much that I was attached to this particular home in Greymoore; it was more of the fact that this illusion of being normal, this _fantasy_, was finally coming to an end. Give us recon missions after school, but we could still pretend we were normal teenagers. Take away our education, but we could act like we were on a permanent vacation. But without a house to live in meant being on the run again, being hunted down.

And I know the younger kids would get sentimental, having lived in this house for practically an entire year. It was wrong of me to allow us to stay in one place for too long, not just in fear of our safety but because it would be harder to leave. I would have to deal with broken hearts, and the memories we would try and fail to forget.

I wish we didn't have to leave, but the dream was over and the clock began ticking again. We were running out of time.

I stood up as straight as I could, trying to exude strength now more than ever. Grabbing a handful of jackets from the pile Nudge made on the floor, I started maneuvering Angel's flaccid body into one of my sweaters, the rest of the flock understanding my actions and following suite.

"Are we gonna bring any weapons?" Gazzy whispered as he shrugged on a hoodie on top of his sweater, refusing to show any pain from his newly relocated shoulder.

"No, we're not going to fight them." _Hopefully._

"Don't you think we should call your mom?" Nudge's voice shook, even as she was buttoning a coat all the way up to her throat, trying not to jostle her wounded arm too much.

"_No,_" I snapped, biting down on my tongue before I questioned if she was insane. "We are not bringing my mom into this. It's bad enough that Ella's involved."

Subconsciously, I looked for said person in the darkness of the room, spotting Ella pulling on a stripped zipper jacket over her sweater. Feeling the weight of my stare, she looked up and tried to give me a smile of reassurance, which looked more like a grimace than anything.

"H-how many do you think there are? The Bruisers, I mean." I heard Ella ask when I'd turned away from the flock to secretly tuck a switch blade into my back pocket. I know I'd just told Gazzy that we weren't fighting them, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Standing by the side of my bed, I met Iggy's eyes from across the room as he helped Fang put on another layer. Since I shared his ability of enhanced senses, he and I both knew the severity of the situation. In complete silence, we could both hear the footsteps reverberate throughout the house as they roamed the halls in search for their prey: us. It was terrifying, listening to the multiple footfalls as some came too close to the room, or as a pack began to run in our direction. There were so, _so_ many. I wasn't sure if I should lie to Ella to make her feel better, or admit the truth so she could fully comprehend the situation.

"About thirty to forty on the ground floor; probably sixty in total throughout the house, but that's just a rough estimate," Iggy said, voice grave.

"How did they even find us? How do they know where we live?" Panic evident in her voice as she stood off a few feet away from our bustling group, her arms tightly crossed over her chest.

Somehow, even with all my attention divided between Ella, and our escape plans, and the door to my bedroom; I noticed Nudge glance at Angel out of the corner of my eye.

She knew something.

"_Nudge –_" I whirled on her then, narrowing my eyes at her. Just as Nudge opened her mouth indignantly to defend herself, Gazzy interrupted us both.

"Look, we'll talk about that later. We're running out of time!" He and the boys began ushering us to the double doors that led to my balcony.

"Fine. Gazzy, I need you to get all the flammable things you can find in my room and dump them on my bed. Perfume, alcohol, even some of my school notebooks from my backpack," I instructed as I walked towards my desk and decided to grab my wallet and my phone at the last minute.

Having figured out where I was going with all this, Gazzy paused mid-rummaging through my dresser and looked up at me. "Won't they figure out that we were hiding here? Won't that give us away?"

"We'll long since be hidden in the forest."

"Why can't we just take to the sky?" Nudge asked as Fang began last minute check-ups for any uncovered or bleeding wounds. I let Fang take that one as he stopped on front of Nudge, placed a hand on her shoulder, and said in only the way Fang could speak calmly, "Because we'll have to carry Ella and Angel, and none of us are fit enough to do that. In fact, we may well have to carry Max too." He'd lowered his voice towards the end of his statement in humor, and I shot him the bird right as I was finished riffling through my desk drawers. That last bit was completely unnecessary, but I appreciated his attempts at comforting Nudge all the same.

I knew exactly what she was thinking; it would be easy to do an up and away like we always do. The flock almost always resorts to flying in situations like this, simply because that was what we were best at. Flying gives us the comfort that we can travel away fast and far, and that only a few of our adversaries were able to fly too. But circumstances were different, and we'd had to modify the plans.

I was itching to balance on the railing of the balcony, pounce on my toes and snap open my wings to ascend into the dawn; but one twitch of the muscles in my wings sent a pang of pain all throughout my body that ended at the base of my spine. Retracting them tightly against my back, I tried to convince myself that flying was never an option anyway.

"The sky's the first place they'll look for us," I added. Just as I was beginning to start listing off instructions, Gazzy's exclaim caught everyone's attention and we all turned towards him by the side of my bed.

"_Jesus,_" he breathed, hugging all the items he'd collected to his chest as he stared wide-eyed at the dead body on my bed, the Bruiser's bloody mouth frozen open in attack with his neck leaking and soaking my light blue sheets in crimson. It was a wonder how he hadn't noticed the three hundred pound man lying on my bed earlier, with the moonlight highlighting his blond hair and golden eyes, but then again we were all preoccupied with others things. It was kind of hard to miss though.

"Actually that's the Bruiser that Max killed with the pen she was going to attack Iggy with," Nudge said, "Right Iggy?"

It was directed at him, sounding proud. It was as if she needed to defend my honor or something, but I noticed Ella pressing herself against the wall and how that fact might've scared her even more. Even at a time like this, we were still fighting and teasing each other.

_So not the time, Nudge._

"Okay, break it up." I rolled my eyes. "Gazzy, Nudge, you take the lead. Fang, carry Angel. Iggy, you take Ella. I'll be the last one out. We split up; meeting point's at the edge of the forest, towards Leinid City. If we're not complete by 3am, move on without the others. Do I make myself clear?"

"Why are we splitting up?" Ella barely mumbled, looking even more scared and worried at the thought. I'd just shrugged on a jacket over my wool sweater, hissing at the pain on my shoulder and a wound on my arm I didn't even notice. Beckoning Fang over, he helped me put on a pair of pants over my pajama shorts, careful of my twisted ankle and the bandaged cuts on my calf.

"We have to split up in case any of us get caught," I admitted. "Remember, don't move in a straight path. If you see any Bruisers, travel around them. I don't want any of you attempting or even _thinking_ about taking them on. Are we cl-"

"Rest your breasts, Max. We got this." Iggy raised his voice from the back of the group, putting his arm around Ella. I made a face, but it was best not to encourage him, so I turned towards the double doors and eased them open quietly. Nudge and Gazzy were the first ones out, coasting on a draft as they descended thirty-five feet down. Fang followed, hugging Angel to his chest tightly as he swooped down and followed the others, the four of them still visible through the bare tree tops.

Though it was already almost April; it would still snow occasionally, and the forest floor was far from being clear anytime soon.

I spun around to gesture to Iggy and Ella, ready to launch myself right after them, but paused when I saw Ella back away from Iggy and press herself against the wall beside my bookshelf, squeezing her eyes shut and vehemently shaking her head.

"I can't do it, Max. I just – I _can't_," she breathed.

_Oh no. Not now._

If there was one thing I always seem to forget, it was that Ella wasn't like one of us.

It was easy to think that she was practically an honorary member of the flock (minus the wings) because from the moment we'd met her, Ella had always been so kind and trusting of all of us. She and my mother had welcomed us with open arms, and treated us like normal kids. It was never a problem that we had wings and different powers, and she believed that we would protect her from any danger that comes our way. I had underestimated her ability to understand and accept the flock and all that we entail – the risks, the surprises, and all.

Ella was the perfect example of a sister, which was why I guess it was so easy to forget that something like _this_ wasn't normal for her. She had adapted to our nature, respected our boundaries, and even moved _across the country for us_ for Christ's sake; and all this time it seems that I would just expect her to follow, rather than try to make her comfortable.

I didn't deserve a sister like her.

"_Ella,_" I rushed to her, ignoring the pain of my sudden movements and taking her cold hands in mine. I hope she didn't notice how my blood-stained hands spread onto hers as I looked into her eyes – her chocolate brown eyes like mine – and spoke calmly.

"Ella, please trust me. Ella, _look at me_," I said, keeping my voice gentle but with a slight sense of urgency. "Everything's going to be okay. Alright? Iggy's going to fly you down there, and you're just going to run till the border of the next city. _You can do this._ Ella, you're an athlete. You're fast, and you're smart, and you have Iggy."

"Yeah," Iggy interjected, placing a reassuring hand on her arm, drawing close to her. "Ella, how you ever doubted me?" he said with a smile, but I'm pretty sure that only freaked her out because of the stitches on his mouth.

_Nice going, Iggy._

Ignoring his question she rasped out, "Why can't we just stay here? I mean, we can hide in the closets till morning and wait for the police to come and find us. I highly doubt they'll search every room in this house and I really don't think we should-"

I squeezed her hands. "No one can help us but ourselves," I told her truthfully. "They'll probably sniff us out or find a way to trap us. There are far too many of them in this house. Listen, the best thing we can do is try and put as much distance between us as possible; and I'm not going to leave without you, Ella."

"Same here," Iggy said resolutely, his voice firm. "You're my best friend, El. I assure you – we're going to make it out of this."

"_We promise,_" I spoke for both me and Iggy.

I looked at her face for a long while, trying to read her face for her decision. At the same time, I didn't want to pressure her in fear of scaring her about the situation some more; but every second we spent standing in my room gave the Bruisers another second to close in on us. Just as I was about to open my mouth to try to convince her again, ready to attempt a new tactic; Ella just sighed and nodded her head, stepping closer towards Iggy and clutching the front of his jacket.

"Okay, let's go."

Iggy carried Ella effortlessly, wrapping his arms carefully around her waist as he jumped onto the railing, snapped open his wings, and flew as smoothly as he could to land nimbly on the ground. Although I could see Ella visibly shaking from here, Iggy was probably the best person for the job considering she trusted him right after me, and that they've grown to become best friends.

Now it was my turn.

I was beginning to build momentum, taking a few steps back from the balcony; before I stopped and decided to spin around.

Looking at the huge expanse of my bedroom one last time, I drank in all the details and tried my best to commit everything to memory: my bed that I shared with all the girls during sleepovers, and nights when I'd fall asleep with Fang; my desk with all my school materials that I abandoned weeks ago; the couch on front of the TV with all the crumbs and the soda stain from bingeing out with the flock; my baby grand piano where I'd taught myself everything I knew; and my special wall, cramped with various pictures and memories of the flock, my mom and Ella, and my friends from Greymoore High.

I tried to remember it on mornings when I'd wake up and the sun was just rising, spilling bright light across my floor through the windows; tried to remember it as I'd land on my balcony on cold nights as I pad through the darkness of my room before jumping onto my bed. I was not going to remember it like this, destroyed and coated in blood and death.

In fact, in the few short seconds I stood there reminiscing, I would remember the way the flock scrambled to get to the family room on weekends, sliding across the polished floors of the main entrance, and goofing off in the backyard that went on for acres. We'd all meet up in the kitchen for breakfast in the mornings, and bum around together in the entertainment room. We broke a ton of furniture, spilled all sorts of things, wrestled anywhere, and got lost navigating this place a bunch of times.

This house was fully lived in.

In the eleven months that we've lived here, I'd say that we spent it well despite recent events. I could admit that I was going to miss this, and that a small part of me mourned the loss of everything this house entailed.

Swiftly making my way to my special wall, I looked for one particular photo and tucked it into my pocket upon finding it.

And I knew everything was going to be okay, because this house is not a home – not without my flock.

Walking back towards the balcony, I got up onto the railing and procured a small flame in my palm with effort, facing the inside of my room as the fire licked my fingers. With one last glance, I drew my arm back and tossed the ball of flame right onto my bed, just as a pack of Bruisers burst into my room and I let myself go into a backwards freefall.

Now _that_ was not the best idea.

Badass? Yes.

Stupid? Most definitely.

Tears sprung to my eyes as I shot out my mangled wings at the last minute, saving myself from landing on my head and cracking open my skull, and pathetically trying to ride on a draft as I descended into the snow. My movements were stiff and awkward as I crash landed on all fours, jarring all my bones for the nth time that night, but I wasted no time as I got to my feet and broke off into a sprint to catch up with the others.

_It was hell._

Running was second nature to me. I've been training my whole life, and I was on the run from Bruisers, Flyboys, and M-Geeks for a good fraction of it. I was even the fastest in the flock, considering I could go into warp-speed both on land and in the air. But I'm not superwoman; and running clumsily on your twisted ankle with one eye swollen shut, jarring your bitten shoulder and broken collarbone with every step, and all my muscles and open wounds burning with exertion was just fucking insane.

I wanted to look back. That was the human thing to do, right? To look back at what you were leaving, to look back to see how far you've gone; but learning from experience I know that this only slows you down and doesn't get you anywhere. I wanted to see our house burning in its own poetic way, wanted to know how much distance we were able to put between us and the Bruisers so far. I was frightened too, however, so I didn't.

I just. Kept. Running.

It was easy enough to weave through the forest. Tall, thin trees filled my vision, and everywhere I looked seemed to just be more and more of them. They stretched on vertically for hundreds of feet into the dark morning sky, their branches like spindly black cobwebs intertwining with one another. On the ground, it wasn't hard to miss them, since the trees like black needles were set into a white background. Each tree was set apart from another by a few feet, which was enough for us to zigzag through to cover up our tracks.

I wouldn't believe it was morning if I hadn't known the time. The entire atmosphere was dark and dreary, like the weather knew what was going to happen and had stayed cold, despondent and dangerous to set the mood. Even with the white snow, I still felt blind as I depended on my good eye and had to see through the puffs of air from my mouth with every exhale.

We were yards away when I started to do a headcount. Fang was far ahead on my left, practically a black blur as he appeared and disappeared from my vision. Angel was still in his arms, carrying her like a child, but not even her weight or his injuries seemed to slow him down. Everyone else was scattered right in front of me in varying distances; with Nudge still in the lead. Iggy and Ella – no longer holding hands – were running a few feet ahead of me; and from what I could tell, Iggy could've gone much faster if he didn't choose to slow down to match Ella's pace. Though Gazzy had left first with Nudge, he had waited for Iggy and Ella to leave my room, and now I was neck and neck with him.

Even if it hurt like a bitch, I poured on the speed and overtook Gazzy, then eventually Iggy and Ella. I knew I should've stayed at the back to safeguard the rest, but I couldn't keep waiting on them to go any faster and I didn't know how much longer I could take this. I was on an adrenaline high, but how much longer would it last until all my energy faded? Until all my stitches ripped and all my wounds started to bleed out again? I needed to lose the Bruisers' tail on us before I slowed down or collapsed from exhaustion.

To pinpoint the Bruisers in the distance, I focused then on my senses rather than my surroundings. It was difficult to hone in on one particular sense since almost all I could feel was pain, but with some effort I could hear the rustle of the branches overhead, the scampering of animals in the nooks and crannies of trees, and more than six other people breathing raggedly as background noise.

And if I could already hear them, then they were close enough to be a threat.

I bit my lip in concentration, looking down at my feet going one on front of the other as I tried to figure out where they were. They should still be meters away, but if I could figure out where they assumed we were going, I could lead the flock in the opposite direction.

It was everything at once – the tightness in my chest, the cold sweat on my forehead, the rattling of my bones, snow crunching in all directions, the taste of blood on my lips, but every detail intermingled with the rest until my ears could only focus on the unexpected loud gunshot from behind me, cutting through the still air.

That took away everything, made all the details blur and disappear and fade to nothing as I abruptly stopped, spun on my heel and turned around to look behind me.

Then I saw.

I saw my sister Ella look me in the eyes, open her mouth in a gasp, before falling to the ground and immediately staining the white snow in crimson.

I saw her hand reaching out to me, dark hair whipping in the cold wind. Her brown eyes met mine in that millisecond of bated breath, and I swear I could see all her trust in me – her older sister – right before she got shot in the back.

Then I lost it.

My next actions were beyond my control, instinct to protect my own. I've never done it before, not intentionally, but I wouldn't take back what I did and I definitely wouldn't regret it.

Without moving from my stance, without any words said; I simply looked up at the Bruiser who stood 15 meters away, delved into his mind and shut it down, watching the light leave his eyes, the smug smirk leave his face, and his body crumple to the ground in satisfaction.

I wish he suffered. I wish I had rushed up to him and broke his neck with my bare hands, or reached into his body and yanked his heart out. I wish I controlled his mind and made him shoot himself right between the eyes. Or put a force field inside of him, and let him explode. Or watched as he blazed up in flames.

He didn't deserve a quick, painless death. They deserved to suffer. All of them.

I hadn't realized I'd been standing still for quite some time, just staring down at the spot where the Bruiser lay with hatred, until I was snapped out of my thoughts with a tug on my hand and my name being called.

"_Come on_, we have to check on Ella!" Gazzy urged, pulling me forward by my cold hand. At the mention of Ella, the fog cleared from my mind and I didn't miss a beat as I followed the Gasman to where Ella laid.

Upon reaching her, I immediately reached for her wrist and checked for a pulse. It took three long seconds before I finally felt the faint, slow thumping on the pads of my fingers. With the both of us on our knees to assess the damage, I gently placed her head in my lap before the both of us worked in tandem to lift three layers of clothing off her back. My hands were shaking as we finally came across the ugly wound; the bullet lodged into her middle back, right next to the spine. I've dealt with worse, but Ella was nothing like me; I didn't know if the bullet had already damaged her spine or if it fatally damaged any internal organs; and that scared me the most.

"Gazzy, where did everyone else go?" I rasped as I struggled to remove my sweater.

"I don't know! I overtook Iggy and Ella one second, and the next I heard the gunshot. I didn't get to see where Fang and Nudge went. I was only trying to catch up to you," he said, just as panicked as I was. Together we ripped up my sweater to shreds in a makeshift bandage.

_Guys! Guys, I'm not sure if you can hear me, but Ella's been shot and I don't know what to do. Where are you?_

"Max, what do we do now?" Gazzy turned his huge baby blue eyes towards me from across Ella's body, my throat closing up as all the facts dawned on me.

Here we were; a bruised and banged up teenager and a frightened 8-year old left to deal with a wounded and bleeding girl in the middle of a snow-covered forest at dawn, in the midst of running away from blood-thirsty human hybrids who were out to kill them.

The odds weren't in our favor.

"Uhh…" I desperately searched our surroundings, as if a solution would just come out of nowhere. Taking my chances; I opened my hand above the wound, palm down, and slowly manipulated the bullet to dislodge from the hole. It began to gush more blood at my tampering, and I instantly put the scraps of my sweater onto the wound and pressed down on it with my hands. "Quick, help me put pressure on the wound."

We stayed like that for a while, pressing down on Ella's wound and watching her blood seep in between our fingers until it subsided into a slight well on the patches of cloth we'd used. In the end, Gazzy and I had given a sweater each to stop the bleeding, and I tied one of Ella's jackets around her waist to staunch the rest of it.

All the while, I was trying not to cry.

"Okay, let's go. We have to keep moving," I said hoarsely, rocking back on the heels of my feet and wiping my hands on my jeans.

"But how-"

Already I was standing up, trying not to wince at the strain on my muscles, and hauling Ella upright. I wasn't purposely trying to come off as a martyr, but in this case there was only one option. It was either me or Gazzy.

"Help me get her on my back."

I could see the argument in Gazzy's eyes. "But Max-"

"_Just do as I say,_" I demanded through gritted teeth.

Together, Gazzy carried Ella onto my back as I got into a slight crouch and supported all her weight on my broken wings. Tears sprung in my eyes as I felt the bones crunch against my back, and I bit back my gasp as I felt some of the stitches on my calf rip open; but I just steeled myself, tightened my grip on Ella, and began to walk.

"We can't stop no matter what. I'll keep trying to contact the others, but you've got to lead the way, alright? Can you do that for me?" I told Gazzy, panting. He nodded grimly.

We weren't even a few feet away from where Ella got shot and already I wanted to fall on my knees from exhaustion.

Every movement was heavy and sluggish, Gazzy keeping pace with me as I dragged my feet through the snow. The pain was a cycle – taking deep breaths rattled my broken ribs, with Ella's arms draped loosely around my shoulders jostling the bite, the weight of her body grating on my wings, and my head wound making me sway with dizziness. It was pulsing so constantly all throughout my body that at a certain point as we kept walking, I was starting to feel numb everywhere and I could barely feel anything.

Or maybe that was the hypothermia talking.

Placing my focus on anything else other than how good giving up sounded right about now, I continued to try to reach out to the rest of the flock through their minds.

The thing about my powers is that if there's anything I seriously needed to work on, it was any ability that had to do with concentration. I had always been a hands-on kind of girl and can easily master anything physical. It was the mental abilities such as invisibility, psychometry, and mind manipulation that I majorly sucked at. It's either a hit or miss when it comes to those abilities, more often used on accident, so I figured I wasn't doing a very good job at trying to contact the others.

I refused to think about anything else; to dwell on our slim chances of reaching the border in our state, or what our next step was after burning down our house.

And most importantly, I sure as hell wasn't going to think about how I was carrying my baby sister on my back, wounded and unconscious after I'd promised my mom I'd take care of her.

I didn't want to think about how this was all my fault.

"This way," Gazzy urged a few steps ahead of me, breathless from walking for who knows how long.

'_Fang, Iggy, HELP!' _I was already screaming inside my head. Closing my eyes and clenching my teeth in frustration, everything suddenly started to sway as I tilted left and right until I was looking at the trees horizontally through lidded eyes. Only after the world stopped spinning did I realize that I'd fallen on my knees and onto the ground sideways, throwing Ella off my back.

"_Max!_" Gazzy rushed to my side, and together we somehow managed to drag mine and Ella's body to rest against the base of a tree. Ella was more deadweight than ever, if that were possible; lolling against my shoulder until her head fell against my lap. I could barely keep my good eye open, both from lack of sleep and exhaustion, but my sister's unusually pale skin and purple lips were hard not to see. Her dark hair made the contrast so eerily apparent – like black against white, and the layers of jackets and sweaters did nothing to stop her skin from turning ice cold and frozen.

Then I had a flashback.

"_Max?" Ari said, sounding confused._

"_You hurt? You get shot? Where?" I demanded._

_He looked down at his shirt and jacket. There were no spreading rosettes of blood. He shook his head. "I just…"_

_He glanced up at me, and there he was – seven-year old Ari, the little kid who used to follow me around. I saw him clearly in those eyes._

"_I just…Oh, Max," Ari said, and then slumped against me, eyes still open, weight so heavy on me that I fell to my knees next to him. I stared at his face, shook his shoulder._

"_Ari!" I said. "Ari! Come on, snap out of it! _Please_, Ari?" Horrified, I pressed two fingers against his neck, feeling for a pulse._

_Ari's time had come. He had expired._

_Right here, right now, in my arms._

And somehow, it felt oddly like history repeating itself.

I couldn't bring myself to panic though. The snow was hard and numbing against my body, but the lack of having to strain my muscles was heavenly. I felt so at ease.

"Max, come on, we have to keep going!"

Looking up at the tree tops, I stared up at the pitch black sky through hazy eyes. "But I'm so tired."

"_Come on_, we're almost there! We can't stop now!" Gazzy's voice was full of panic, wavering and on the verge of tears. He was talking right next to my ear, tugging on my injured arm, but I lightly swatted him away. "You told me we had to keep going no matter what."

Ella. The Bruisers. Meeting up with the flock on the border of Leinid City. I knew all that but I don't think my body could take anymore. "Let me just take a break first, Gazzy. My feet are killing me."

"Max, _get up!_" He was hysteric now, and it made my ears hurt.

"Go away, Gazzy. We'll be fine." I closed my eyes. "_I promise._"

And we all know how well I keep my promises.

* * *

**It's me again :)** (Well duh, who else would it be?)

First: if anyone catches my book reference, I'll give you a short little sneak peek into chapter 58. :P

On a whim, I checked my Legacy User Stats and _mother of pearl_, I'm (apparently) on 99 people's Favorite List. Guys, I'm the favorite of 99 other authors.:O :O :O That's freakin' _insane_. If someone can take me up to 100, I'll be ecstatic; and if you guys take me beyond that, I'll be walking on clouds.

The **flashback** at the end was directly quoted from Chapter 121 of STWAOES. Just fyi. :P

And two more funny stories:

1. Sometime in the middle of the year, I was hanging out with Rox – one of my irl best friends – and she asked me what was the one thing we probably couldn't talk about with each other. So I confessed that I write, specially that I write Fanfiction…

…and sweet baby Jesus, she's on Fanfiction too. Though I don't know her account (that's one thing we never shared), I now know that she's somewhere floating in this universe. It's hilarious. XD

2. Hoooly shit. So I was looking at a sticky note I left on one of my writing notebooks (trying to patch up my outline and gather what I've written), and it told me to refer to a 'white notebook' for the last chapter "The Labyrinth". The reference instantly clicked in my head and I riffled through my desk drawers for one of my writing notebooks eighty-kajillion years ago when I was 12 years old. Surprisingly, I still had the same plot for this scene but in that draft Max and Fang never dated, there were only 3 people who broke into the house, Max was not fatally wounded as she is now, and I remembered to include Total and the other dogs in the scene. Guise. I was seriously busting an artery from laughing at my old writing. I'd give you an excerpt, but then I'd probably kill you guys from laughter too. "Death by Sucky 12-year Old Writing" - what a way to go. ;)

Now I shall impart you with some shameless self-advertising: So **I wrote a oneshot** on a whim around 4 months ago titled _**We Dreamt In Heist**_. I worked on it for about 2 months, and I even had my friend thestupidgenius1123 beta it. I hope some of you could take the time to check it out and tell me what you think. I've got a couple of oneshot ideas but I'm starting to wonder if my oneshot-writing capabilities have started to go downhill too. :\

**I hope you all review! **I'd seriously love to hear what you guys think of this, after hiding under a rock for 10 months. :P If you have any qualms with the content or my writing, let me know too. :) I'm very much open to concrit.

**Peace out.**

.: Tiffany :.


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